More shoppers are buying less online than one year ago. So says the findings of a report published on the Checkout Ireland website today. Irish consumers still prefer to buy groceries in-store than online despite investments by retailers to expand their service offering.

According to the latest Consumer Intelligence Report from Empathy Research, one of the main reasons for not shopping online is the preference for the bricks and mortar offering with some also stating their concern they would not receive the exact products upon delivery.

Despite the increasing use of e-commerce sites in Ireland by consumers, the rate of online grocery shopping is not as high as expected. However, retailers, such as SuperValu who have been rolling out this service in the last 12 months, continue to invest more in online operations.

Over 70% of the 505 survey respondents said they have never ordered groceries online for home delivery, with two in five saying they actually order less than one year ago.

While smaller retailers, such as c-stores, offer a local delivery service, the larger brands primarily concentrate on big urban centres. One of the top three reasons for not shopping online, according to this survey, is the unavailability of the service in their area. As such, there may be potential for some retailers to tap into this category.

Over three in five (61%) of participants mentioned having a preference for visiting a supermarket as the main reason why they would not order online groceries. This is a key finding and for supermarkets, it is imperative to understand the nature of these preferences.

I want to acknowledge Checkout and Empathy Research for permission to quote from the report.