CashKaro survey: Demonetisation ‘forces’ 50% consumers to start buying groceries online

BigBasket, Grofers, Godrej Nature’s Basket, ZopNow and Grocermax are the most preferred grocery sites

The days of heading to the supermarket are over as people now trade trolleys for home delivery services. New research from CashKaro.com, India’s leading cashback & coupons site, takes a closer look at the cultural shifts in the way millennials stock their kitchen cupboards after demonetization.

The online grocery industry seems to be an unintended beneficiary of the move as the customer cannot postpone essential purchases for their home. The survey indicated that more than 50% of the respondents have started buying grocery/daily items online after demonetisation and a quarter would like to start soon. BigBasket, Grofers, Godrej Nature’s Basket, ZopNow and Grocermax are voted amongst top hyperlocal sites.

BigBasket ranks top in overall service (37%), Grofers leads in packaging (34%), Grocermax has the best prices (32%), ZopNow in delivery convenience (34%) & Godrej Nature’s Basket for fresh products (38%).

The main reason consumers cite for shopping grocery/daily items online is that it allows cash-free transactions (31%) and offers better deals & discounts (25%). This is followed by the fact that online shopping gives consumers more convenience than visiting stores (24%) as well as offers the luxury of delivery time slots as per own availability (10%).

Added innovations such as subscription-based service may have a significant impact on the growth in online grocery shopping, as 44% of respondents said they would like to avail this service considering their busy schedule. 79% of total respondents said they have grocery applications installed in their mobile phones out of which 33% have more than one App. However, 15% of these App buyers said they still like to order via Desktop.

On the survey Swati Bhargava, Co-founder, CashKaro.com, said, “It’s very interesting to notice this changing consumer behaviour towards shopping grocery. The shift from superstores/local vendors to online shopping channels is certainly visible as a lot of users have started to shop for daily items online after demonetisation. The survey is also an indication that while the changing lifestyle coupled with long working hours has shifted grocery purchasing trend from offline to online format, attractive offers by grocery players are also wooing the consumers to opt for online purchases. We at CashKaro also have seen a 2X growth in the number of transactions on these sites post November 8 last year. ”

While the survey indicates a rise in willingness to shop grocery online, not all consumers are ditching the trip to the offline shops. 31% still feel concerned about the quality of online products, 26% are not sure about the return policy whereas 20% prefer to inspect products themselves before buying.

The survey also revealed that almost 61% respondents shop for groceries weekly and a majority of them spend between Rs 500 – 2,000 per month.

The survey was conducted at a pan-India level with 53% male and 47% female participants. A majority of the participants were over 35 years of age and were employed.