80% of Singaporeans prefer shopping for groceries online post-pandemic

Insights featured in Singapore Business Review

Accessibility, quality of products, and trustworthiness of online grocers are key contributors. Inflation is also changing Singapore households’ shopping habits  

Singapore, 17 May 2023 - RedMart by Lazada, Singapore’s first fully digital grocer, today released the findings of its latest research into Singaporean’s grocery shopping and restocking habits. The nationwide survey of a thousand consumers, conducted with Milieu Insight, revealed that eight out of 10 Singaporeans still prefer shopping for groceries online, a habit that remained entrenched among households in this post-pandemic period.  

According to the study, today’s shoppers continue to embrace the convenience of doorstep deliveries and easy access to customer service, product quality and the trust they have in online grocery platforms like RedMart. Of the 80% that shop for groceries online, three in five households do so at least once a month. In addition, more than half of these regular online grocery shoppers (52%) found that there has been no change to their grocery shopping frequency as Singapore transitioned to normalcy in June 2022, while a quarter (24%) found  that they are shopping online for groceries more often.  

Commenting on the findings, Damien Schricke, Head of Grocery and RedMart at Lazada  Singapore said, “While restrictions are lifted and life returns to normal, we see that shopping habits and preferences which developed during the pandemic continue to stay. Our mission  at RedMart remains to provide quality and daily essentials for a variety of taste buds at  affordable prices that are accessible and convenient for Singapore households.” 

The study also looked at how the current inflationary environment has impacted Singapore’s grocery shopping habits and household budgets. It showed that 42% of households in Singapore have shrunk their grocery budgets by 10-20%, with a further 23% reducing budgets by 30% or more. 

For those that reduced their budgets, three quarters (74%) changed their buying habits by buying based on needs, and switching to cheaper brands was a way to reduce spending for over half (53%) of them. Another popular way of tightening wallets was switching to house brands like RedMart’s Private Label (50%).  

For the small number of households with increased grocery budgets (14%), the survey identified some interesting changes in habits such as bulk buying to get a better discount (48%)  and switching from fresh meats to frozen meats (33%). 

“Inflation and higher cost of living have led to consumers coming up with new ways of coping with their grocery needs. To help our consumers with their day-to-day needs, beyond our diverse assortment of local and international products, RedMart’s private label ensures affordability for everyone. In the face of inflationary pressures, our Price Match Promise, free  delivery and 5% Everyday Cashback mechanisms are here to help our consumers stretch their  dollar,” Schricke added. 

In addition, the study also explored how Singaporean shoppers restock groceries. Despite shopping online regularly, three in five grocery shoppers frequently find themselves short on supplies, and that the majority of households have not found an effective method to  remember to restock their groceries. Respondents who most frequently found themselves out of grocery supplies relied on memory (50%) or writing a physical list (45%), while those who rarely ran out of groceries relied on visual inspection of their fridge and pantry.  

To help Singapore households better manage their grocery restocking routines, RedMart launched RedMart Time, a packaging-based initiative that helps grocery shoppers easily identify keep track of their grocery supplies by visually reminding them to re-stock before it’s too late.  

Marcus Chew, Chief Marketing Officer, Lazada Group said, “Many households have yet to find a reliable and systematic way to replenish their grocery supplies, which can lead to frustration  and inconvenient last-minute grocery trips. RedMart Time is a campaign that addresses this  issue by aligning in with people’s existing shopping habits. With easy-to-read visual cues on  product packaging on display, people can quickly work out when to restock.” 

To find out more about the survey findings, please click here. 

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Methodology 

Milieu Insight surveyed 1,000 online shoppers in Singapore on their grocery shopping frequency, habits and preferences. The survey was conducted in March 2023 and included adults from 16 and above to ensure a good representation across all age groups.  

About Lazada Group 

Lazada Group is Southeast Asia's pioneer eCommerce platform. For the last 11 years, Lazada  has been accelerating progress in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand  and Vietnam through commerce and technology. Today, a thriving local ecosystem links about  160 million active users to more than one million actively-selling sellers every month, who are  transacting safely and securely via trusted payments channels and Lazada Wallet, receiving  parcels through a homegrown logistics network that has become the largest in the region.  With a vision to achieve USD100 billion annual GMV, Lazada aims to serve 300 million  shoppers by 2030, and be the best at enabling brands and sellers in digitalizing their businesses.  

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Milieu Insight, an award-winning survey software and market research company, is dedicated to helping businesses succeed in a data-rich environment.