Picnic to start delivering meals in the Netherlands: “A 4-billion-euro market”

In the Netherlands, Picnic is entering the market for freshly prepared meals with its new service, Picnic Kookt. The online supermarket claims to offer lower prices and better quality than meal delivery services like Uber Eats or Just Eat Takeaway.

High demand

Picnic already tested the meal service in April and May in parts of Haarlem, Amsterdam, Utrecht, and Eindhoven. This revealed that demand is high. That is why the retailer is now accelerating the rollout of the service to the Randstad and the southern Netherlands. Within a few months, the rollout across the entire Netherlands should be complete, and all 1.5 million Picnic customers will be able to order the meals.

The freshly prepared meals are made in Picnic’s own kitchen, featuring plenty of vegetables and mostly local and organic ingredients, without unnecessary additives. Customers currently have a choice of about twenty dishes, including meals such as rendang, chicken teriyaki, butter chicken, and lasagna, for about ten euros per person. They are delivered to your home for free along with your daily groceries.

Consumers are more critical

The potential is significant: by 2024, delivery services—along with restaurants that deliver to homes and ready-made meals from supermarkets—are projected to generate over 4 billion euros in revenue in the Netherlands. The online supermarket sees opportunities in competing with meal delivery services: in recent years, their prices have risen sharply, while consumers have become more critical of price and quality. Meals via Uber Eats or Just Eat Takeaway can easily cost twenty euros per person, even though they are often highly processed.

“With Picnic Kookt, we make freshly cooked food just as easy as ordering takeout. You simply choose how many people you want to order for, get it delivered to your door for free, and on busy days, you have a good meal at home that the whole family will enjoy,” says Michiel Muller, co-founder of Picnic. This is how the online supermarket continues to expand its services. After all, Picnic not only delivers groceries but also picks up Nespresso capsules, returnable bottles, and cans, and thanks to its partnership with PostNL and DHL, customers can return their packages.