Online sales of food and beverages in the U.S. reached $17 billion in 2018, making the U.S. the second largest food e-commerce market in the world with 15% of global sales, according to U.S. Grocery Market Focus: The Amazon Food Shopper, 2nd Edition, a new report by market research firm Packaged Facts.
Through 2023, food e-commerce sales in the U.S. are forecast to increase 32% per year. As the availability of online grocery shopping expands and consumers begin to embrace online shopping for its convenience compared to shopping in-store, sales are expected to rise dramatically.
“This is undoubtedly a market that is ripe for rapid expansion,” said David Sprinkle, research director for Packaged Facts.
Strong commitments to developing online grocery services by Amazon and Walmart — the nation’s two largest food e-commerce players — have helped boost market growth.
Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods Market in June 2017 and its expansion into perishable items through AmazonFresh and Amazon Prime Pantry have prompted Walmart to increase investment in promoting online services and curbside pickup. Such activities have in turn helped convince other grocery retailers to adapt to e-commerce in order to remain competitive.
E-commerce in general in the U.S. has been quick to develop due to:
- cultural preference for convenience
- a highly developed network of stores and malls
- consumer tendency to spend significant amounts of time online
For online grocery shopping specifically, the combination of three elements helped create a perfect environment for growth in the U.S. between 2013 and 2018:
- increased mobile/smartphone usage
- improved website and mobile app interfaces
- expansion of crowdsourced business models to delivery and shopping
Packaged Facts, a division of MarketResearch.com, publishes market intelligence on a wide range of consumer market topics, including consumer demographics and shopper insights, consumer financial products and services, consumer goods and retailing, and pet products and services. Packaged Facts also offers a full range of custom research services. Reports can be purchased at our company website and are also available through MarketResearch.com.
