COVID has made 2020 a terrible year for small shops. Reliant on business from the local community, convenience stores, bakeries, garden centres and Polish and Indian groceries have all battled significantly lower in-store sales, which has led to the threat of potential permanent closure – and as winter takes hold and the virus continues to evolve, we still don’t know how effective any vaccine will truly be.
But there is a silver lining. If we look at consumer shopping behaviours, there has been a definite uptake in online retail sales, especially in the grocery sector. According to the RetailX Coronavirus Consumer Confidence Tracker, online grocery shopping has increased by 32.38% during the pandemic. (See Figure:1 Impact on online grocery shopping during COVID-19).
Our insights around the data are particularly relevant to grocery owners, symbol group retailers and independent convenience store chains such as Pick n Save and V B & Sons, and will help you run and grow your business more effectively.
We see three main reasons behind this increase.
- People are maintaining social distancing measures and avoiding indoor areas for shopping
- Long queues in supermarkets are encouraging people to buy online
- As people are working from home, with additional childcare responsibilities, it is easier to grocery shop online rather than head to a brick-and-mortar store.
Figure 1: Impact on online grocery shopping during COVID-19
Note: Graph and statistics were sourced from statista.com
What does this mean to you as a local shop owner?
We believe that this online shopping behaviour will continue and potentially become the new norm. So, if you aren’t already online, now is the time to change that. By creating a new online revenue channel for your business, you should generate an additional revenue stream, at the same time taking back some of your local market share.
So, what are your next steps?
If you believe having an online shop will help you grow your business, then we are here to make that happen. At Localsupplies.com, we help local shops and garden centres set up and promote themselves online.
Worried it sounds difficult? Don’t worry, it’s not. We help you every step of the way, from registration, shop set-up, and product and image uploading, to online campaigns and special offers.
Want to know more before you commit? Then just register your interest by clicking on this link, and we will be in touch in the next three working days.
And if you have any other questions, just drop me a line at [email protected].
What is Localsupplies.com?
Localsupplies.com is a multi-vendor, multi-sector online marketplace with a mission to empower local shops to increase their revenue by quickly selling products online. We are building a community that connects shop owners with local shoppers to help the local economy thrive.
We deliver a better, faster, cheaper and scalable way for you to have an online presence without having to create your own e-com store. Plus, you don’t have to worry about technical issues, site running or maintenance. We handle all that for you.