If anyone thought that lifting restrictions due to the pandemic in 2022 would bring the organized food retail market back to where it was in 2019, they were probably laughing. Supermarket chains, which in any case have been constantly developing in recent years, are still in constant transformation, helped by at least the largest of them, the fact that their turnover has increased significantly during the two years of the pandemic, since they have directed part of the costs household.

So now they are constantly expanding their product range, selling more and more electrical appliances, toys, clothes and shoes, gardening supplies, books, seasonal items, while at the same time providing more services such as having restaurants in stores. , playgrounds, car charging stations, as well as automated boxes for receiving parcels (luggage offices).

In fact, contrary to what the chains themselves expected, under the weight of inflationary pressure, large stores, supermarkets continued to be very popular in 2022 and, due to the strengthening of the services provided, were transformed into places for shopping, as well as entertainment for the whole family.

According to the latest data from the research company IRI, in 2022 the share of stores with an area of ​​more than 2500 sq.m. amounted to 14.5%, while the realized turnover in stores in this category increased by 7.9% compared to 2021. Why did this happen? Although market analysts initially calculated that in the face of rising prices, consumers would limit their visits to supermarkets in order to avoid so-called impulsive shopping, ultimately consumers continued to prefer supermarkets for two reasons: first, they find more offers there – if after In general , chains have found a way to attract customers – than in smaller stores, and secondly, there you can shop and have fun without wasting time and money elsewhere.

Despite inflationary pressures, department stores continue to enjoy great popularity.

big competition

In favor of this development is the market leader Sklavenitis, which has 33 supermarkets, the largest number in the domestic market, which in 2022 further increased its share to 34.4%, according to NielsenIQ, from 30.4% in 2021. with average daily attendance rising to 560,000 from 547,730 in 2019. The latest investment in this area by Sklavenitis Group was the creation of a supermarket in New Philadelphia in a former Renault building, a store with a total area of ​​16,500 sq. m, with exhibition halls of 4700 sq.m.

It is no coincidence that other competitors are also investing in large stores in order to increase their traffic, as well as their market share, mainly by increasing the cost of the average check.

Masoutis plans to open four major stores in Attica in the coming years, the first of which is expected to be completed and operational in 2023. The mentioned store will be located in Glyfada, on Vouliagmenis Avenue. It is expected that the chain’s next major store will open in Three Bridges. AB Vasilopoulos is preparing its new large supermarket in the Amarousi area, on Kifisias Avenue, a few meters from the “ring”, and next to it is another Sklavenitis supermarket, this time in the Avenue shopping center.

It is worth noting that now Lidl has also entered the logic of larger stores, either by moving to larger facilities or by renovating existing points of sale. A typical example in the first case is the Kallithea store, whose new outlet has a sales area of ​​1,362 sq.m., compared to 787 sq.m. which was the previous point. An example of a renovation, on the other hand, is the Rafina store, which was demolished and rebuilt by the company and now has a sales area of ​​1,472 sqm.

Electric vehicle chargers, food and grocery lockers

Supermarket chains are moving towards value-added services for their customers, services by which they try to capitalize on two seemingly opposing behaviors. First, more and more chains are installing electric vehicle chargers in their parking lots to take advantage of customers staying in stores. In other words, while the battery of the electric car is charging, the consumer is inside the supermarket, shopping, or even able to dine in the case of supermarkets that also have dining areas.

The second emerging trend is the placement, as a rule, in the external areas of supermarket stores, parcel machines (usually lockers) to receive orders made from online stores of other enterprises, and not supermarket chains.

What will supermarket chains benefit from this move? In addition to any income they receive from renting premises, in this way they stimulate not only planned purchases in the supermarket, but also spontaneous and additional ones.

Cooperation between electric utilities and supermarket chains continues and is aimed at creating a large network of chargers. For example, PPC blue and Sklavenitis entered into an agreement to install 687 charging stations for electric vehicles. Since 2021, the checkpoint has begun cooperation with AB Vassilopoulos to place chargers in the stores of the chain. Over the two years 2021-2022, more than 700 chargers were installed in the stores of the chain. Metro AEBE has signed an agreement with nrg to install 500 chargers in 250 Metro stores, both My market stores and wholesale stores (Metro Cash & Carry).
In terms of locker installation, Masutis recently announced an agreement with Skroutz to install Skroutz Points initially in 18 of the chain’s stores in Athens and Thessaloniki. My market has ACS and Box Now counters in 80 stores, while AB Vassilopoulos has Box Now counters in about 130 stores.

Shopping from … screen and express delivery

The most impressive change brought about by the pandemic has been the rise in online supermarket sales. Although the pace of sales growth in 2022 has slowed compared to 2021, the online channel remains an option for a significant portion of consumers. After all, it’s no coincidence that supermarket chains are still investing in this segment and actively competing for fast delivery, delivery within an hour of ordering, or what has come to be known as fast commerce.

A few days ago, the My Market network announced a pilot application of the Express Delivery service for products within a maximum of 60 minutes from the moment of order. A noticeable difference compared to delivery from orders through a third platform is that, firstly, the order is made through the online store of the network and, secondly, it concerns all the codes available in its online store, and not part of them.

Of course, the chains also partner with platforms, namely My market with Wolt and InstaShop, as well as AB Vassilopoulos, Sklavenitis with efood, Masoutis, Kritikos and e-Fresh.gr with Box Cosmote Group. .

Numbers

12 billion turnover of supermarket chains in 2022.
266 million. the turnover of electronic supermarkets in 2022 increased by 5%.
14.5% share of stores over 2,500 m2 in total supermarket turnover in 2022
60 supermarket over 2500 sq.m. operate throughout Greece.