Although e-commerce still represents a small share of the total food market, developments are happening at lightning speed. Delhaize sees how online and physical stores reinforce each other, with franchisees playing an important role.
Double-digit growth
Talk about a pioneer: Delhaize has been delivering groceries to people’s homes since 1989, initially with Caddyhome, a service that allowed customers to order by phone. In 2001, the retailer launched the wineworld.com webshop, followed by delhaizedirect.be in 2009 and Delhaize.be in 2016. Over the past five years, the retailer’s online business has grown at double-digit rates every year, and this is set to continue in the coming years: “E-commerce is gaining momentum at Delhaize,” says Jennifer Nemry, VP of e-commerce, foodservice & data at the retailer. She is one of the speakers at RetailDetail’s Omnichannel & E-Commerce Congress on March 19 in Brussels.
Last year, the retailer launched several notable initiatives. In March, Delhaize announced that it would be the first supermarket in Belgium to no longer charge service fees for picking up e-commerce orders in-store. This was followed in May by the opening of a new e-commerce distribution center in Vorst, which doubled Delhaize’s e-commerce capacity from 25,000 to 50,000 orders per week. The ambition is clear: the retailer, which claims to be the Belgian market leader in home delivery, also wants to become the number one in click & collect grocery shopping.
Online customers also visit the stores
Central to this is Delhaize’s omnichannel vision: 80% of customers who use the pick-up service also shop in the store. At the same time, the supermarket chain is also attracting new customers through its online services: mainly the younger generations, families, and professional customers. Independent entrepreneurs have therefore understood how important pick-up is as an essential lever for growth and customer loyalty.
Delhaize has a lot planned in terms of omnichannel initiatives for this year and the years to come. Jennifer Nemry can’t reveal everything yet, but she will give a sneak preview at the RetailDetail Omnichannel & E-Commerce Congress on March 19 in Brussels. Also on stage that day: Laura Toledano, general manager Western Europe at Zalando, Kelly Cuppens, CEO of Drukke Mama’s, the successful webshop that has already won several awards, and omnichannel expert Gino Van Ossel (Vlerick Business School). We will announce more speakers soon.
Tickets are now available. You can take advantage of an early bird discount until February 25. Don’t wait too long: this congress has been sold out every year for the past few years.
