eCommerce in the Time of Covid19: Mobile App Revenue for Food & Grocery Sector Skyrockets

As Coronavirus – better known as COVID-19 spreads worldwide- we just witnessed online sales go through one of the most significant global drops. Sales dropped by 30%, and this pandemic will continue to affect sales for months. Brick-and-mortar stores were affected the most since we are all making the necessary efforts to practice social distancing & remain in isolation. 

A week ago, 52% of consumers avoided crowds, and 32% left their houses less often. These percentages have drastically jumped since then. Shopping centers, entertainment venues, and workplaces have all been shut down. The majority of the affected cities are undergoing a complete lockdown. 

During this time, we’ve seen consumer behavior shift to purchasing more on mobile apps to order supplies instantly and on the go. Self-isolation has led consumers to buy more via mobile devices. Sales for online grocery stores, food, and household items have increased as consumers prefer to make their purchases online while stocking up for the lockdown.

This trend is evident with our customers in the household and grocery space. We compared the data of businesses from different parts of the world. Let’s take a look at the brands –

1. The VeganKind
The VeganKind is a UK-based vegan snacks and goodies monthly subscription box and supermarket. Vegan foods and snacks are harder to come by at times like these, and consumers should not have to break their code or diet lifestyle during a lockdown. We saw growth in app usage with vegan consumers during Covid19.

Shoppers took to their mobile apps to stock up on vegan snacks. We saw a significant increase in orders, and mobile app revenue increased by 56%.

2. TwoForOne
TwoForOne is a website and mobile app for food & drink aggregation and delivery in Mexico. The app allows consumers to get great deals on food and alcohol from local establishments. This is what is needed during the lockdown. Consumers were meant to visit the establishment to redeem offers; however, they quickly changed their strategy to allow shoppers to order via the mobile app and go there to pick it up.

They instantly came up with offers and promoted them across all channels; they also created combos that included food & beer since most don’t only stock up on food, they want alcohol too. This strategy resulted in mobile app revenue going up by 48%.

“Two for One is an app where you can buy great deals from local businesses that are valid to be redeemed only when consumers visit that business. We faced a huge issue with people wanting to stay inside and avoid human contact/visiting local businesses, so our team decided to turn adversity into an opportunity. We started to focus on ordering online, picking up, and going home. We immediately got hundreds of new clients and boosted local spending in our community.” – Founder, Angel Lopez Valdez

3. Ugakart
Ugakart is an Amazon-esque online store in Uganda. They sell everything – food, clothes, electronics, household appliances, etc. 

 They saw a sharp increase in mobile app revenue, recording a whopping 137% over the last two weeks.  

4. MilkBuy
A Canadian-based Chinese store that sells everything from food to makeup to household items, sourced from across East Asia to cater to the enormous Asian community in Canada. 

It’s everything that the public would need – food, sanitation products & household items. The mobile app made it very convenient for shoppers to order everything they needed. Their mobile app revenue shot up as consumers made purchases to prepare for the lockdown. 

During these times, staying positive and adapting to the changing eCommerce climate is essential. Businesses will have to be innovative and stick together to keep growing. Our customers’ mobile apps helped their shoppers make purchases more conveniently and on the go. As countries go under lockdown, mobile app usage will continue to increase; there’s no better time than now to take up new projects like developing a mobile app for your online store to prepare for when the lockdown is over.