Supermarkets - Eventually be a thing of the past?

[Oreyt]

Do you think at some time (however many years) they will become obsolete like the high street bakers and fruit shops?

Maybe places like McDonald's and Costa will too?

As in. They will be factories instead where everything is sent out directly and ordered online with no walk in shops.

I hope not but anyway we are far from it.
We have a lot of independent bakeries and fruit and veg market in town.

I think they'll get smaller. One of the large Tescos near me has closed its upper level where all the clothes and tech used to be.

People will always need last minute bits. Coffee shops are places people can meet.

I'm in my 60s and can remember a time when we didn't have lots and lots of coffee shops. When they first came in I was incredulous that people would pay so much for coffee that was often no better than tney could have made at home. It took a while for it to sink in that what people are paying for is the experience of getting out of the house and meeting others or at least being in the same room as them. That need is not going to go away. Lockdown surely showed us that human beings are social animals for the most part and we need ways to associate, especially if we live alone.

Funny you should say that because I've noticed that a couple of large supermarkets in London are closing or parts of them are being converted into flats.
I think you're onto something.

Maybe way off in the future but currently our local Tesco is expanding. It's much bigger now

I don’t think online grocery shopping is actually that popular - and the supermarkets are probably one of the few shops that seem to actually flourish.

I think so.

Nobody I know similar to me (busy, working parent) still shops for groceries in person, bar a quick trip to a convenience store on the way home. It's home deliveries all the way - as much as there are minor issues, it still saves HOURS every week and also money if you're like me and impulse buy in store

I've even gone down the slippery slope of using Deliveroo for top up shops. It really isn't that much more expensive.

Maybe in cities as less people decide to have cars.

Not across the country. Online shopping for food suits a particular type of shopper, that meal plans and bulk buys in advance. Not the large % of people who pop in every few days.

I agree with this. I can see the attraction for time poor families or those without transport but, given the choice, there's a lot of people who don't mind grocery shopping or actively prefer doing it in person.

You have more control over what you buy - dates, substitutions if not available etc. Online you have to rely on the decision making process of the picker, which is often within the rules of their employer or completely random/bizarre.

I don't think high street bakers or fruit shops are obsolete either. Most towns and cities have thriving food markets for fresh food and bakers have never been more popular. Plus food can't really be sent direct to individuals economically unless it's from large retailers who deal in large quantities. All the 'artisan' online suppliers are far too expensive for most people to use for their general day to day groceries.

No, not in the foreseeable future. My small town still has independent butchers, green grocers, bakeries, microbreweries, clothes shops, and gift shops. We also have Sainsbury's, Morrisons, Aldi, and Lidl, plus lots of chains.

No, online shopping isn't as popular as people think. In fact food shopping is trending towards people picking up what they need on a more regular basis, popping in shops on the way home, and away from weekly shops.

I hate online grocery shopping - did it once and never again. I don't think it saves money either, you miss out on all the yellow sticker bargains which my freezer is packed with. Popped into sainsbury's yesterday after work - pack of chicken thighs reduced from £4.50 to £1.19, a "finest" chicken tikka ready meal for 99p, salmon fillets for about £2.

I hope not. I’ve never done an online grocery shop and I very rare buy other things online from Amazon etc. I love grocery shopping, when I’m on my own it’s very comforting.

There are 5 bakeries within 200 metres of my home. Bakeries are on the up, not the down.

Supermarkets all busy where I am, I think it's different with food.. we all need to buy it regularly. The stuff on the highstreet not so much.

No, I can see the attraction of online if you have a young family, or don't drive, or live miles from anywhere, but I gave up on it when my DCs got older and it was easier to get out shopping again, so much nicer to choose your own things, pick up the yellow labelled stuff, check shelf life on perishables, be out and about amongst other people etc. I think most of my friends are still shopping in supermarkets, I'm always bumping into people I know there.

Online shopping is fine for boxes of washing powder etc, but not so good for fresh meat and vegetables - people like to see and choose their fresh food. I can't see supermarkets becoming obsolete unless shops get much better at selecting the fresh food and don't palm customers off with short date produce.
I also think that the infrastructure for total online food shopping would have to seriously improve - the pandemic showed us that we are nowhere near properly set up to deliver most goods.

Online shopping isn't really that convenient - I've had to track down Evri deliveries that have been left at the wrong address because some couriers are seemingly unable to read a label or street sign. I'd rather go to the shops tbh. Websites can't show you quality accurately.

Well I bloody hope not. I hate online food shopping, I like to select my own fruit/veg/meat and it's annoying when there are substitutes.

A new Lidl just opened near me so they must be doing alright.

I hope not. Much prefer going to the supermarket or local shops than getting online delivery as I can see all the products and can choose what I get. It's a right faff looking on the App and trying to find the things I want and compare prices. I used to do online shopping and the substitutions and the rubbish fruit and veg was so disappointing. Plus having to wait in for the delivery is less flexible than popping to the supermarket whenever I feel like it.

I used to do online shopping when we were running g DC around and were time poor. But I've given it up as I got fed up with substitutions ( like tomato ketchup instead of soy sauce) and short dated fresh produce. Ended up having to go every week to get replacements so there wasn't really a point to online.

Yes, It's possible that more and more people are shopping online.

That’s so surprising! Why is that?

Oh I order all my shopping.