The widely touted Amazon effect has infiltrated giant grocery chains, and now many brick-and-mortar grocers are turning to a digital shopping experience and home delivery to keep up\u2014and it may be working.<\/p>\n
Unata, a Toronto-based startup that builds digital solutions for retailers, reported that five major regional U.S. grocers using the company\u2019s e-commerce platform reported on average a 44 per cent growth in online sales this year. The data refers to growth in both click and collect online shopping and home delivery, seeing a 43 per cent and 46 per cent year over year growth respectively.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re working with regional grocery retailers like Lowes Foods and Lunds & Byerlys who are dedicated to offering the best digital customer experience possible. As a result, our retail partners are experiencing an average same store growth rate that is almost double the industry average,\u201d said Chris Bryson, Unata\u2019s CEO.<\/p>\n
Unata\u2019s online grocery retail partners include Longo\u2019s, Raley\u2019s and Roche Bros who have tapped the company for its one-to-one digital shopping tools. The company powers e-commerce, loyalty programs, digital coupons and tailor weekly shopping ads.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince launching Unata\u2019s platform in October 2016, we\u2019ve been able to deliver a personalized and convenient digital experience that allows our customers to plan and shop exactly how they want\u201d, said Geoff Farrington, Director of Ecommerce at Roche Bros. \u201cThe growth in online sales that we\u2019ve seen is a testament to the quality of customer experience we\u2019re able to deliver thanks to Unata\u2019s platform.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Unata\u2019s numbers only reflect the retailers it works with, the\u00a0growth is a sign of support that traditional grocers can adapt to keep pace with consumer demands.<\/p>\n