The Rise of Food Delivery Services in the UK

The Rise of Food Delivery Services in the UK

The ongoing popularity in food delivery services shows no signs of waning with a predicted spend of £656 million by UK consumers for delivery orders in 2019, according to the NPD Group. The insatiable appetite for more upmarket services and the increase of recipe box delivery services, particularly from Millennials, is overshadowing the more traditional eating out options. Companies leading the way are employing new techniques to ensure they follow the must-have qualities of a successful food supply chain and keep up with customer demands, particularly in three specific areas.

Diversity of subscription boxes

The UK subscription box market has seen a huge growth over recent years and is forecast to increase by 72 per cent by 2022. This has encouraged new business owners to use the subscription box model for creating innovative niches so customers can discover new brands and food products that they might not ordinarily buy from a shop. The interest in this type of food delivery has been compounded by the desire from Millennials to cook but find it difficult to plan, shop and prepare cooked meals at home, choosing instead to receive the exact quantity of ingredients for a set amount of meals along with the recipes of how to cook them.

Technology and takeaway deliveries

Recent trends have seen a significant dip in the market share from the more conventional method of ordering food by phone from one single delivery service and have been slowly overridden by the leading companies of Just Eat, UberEats and Deliveroo. The rise of digital technology has largely contributed to these changes along with consumers demanding fine dining meals. These new changes allow customers to compare offers and order food from a variety of restaurants, as they would do with other shopping options, with a single tap of their mobile device.

Transparency in grocery deliveries

Grocery retail is also undergoing dramatic changes in order to keep up with other food delivery trends through the expansion of choice and convenience for consumers. While customers are globally minded, there are expectations for locally-sourced and artisanal products which has given rise to more transparency in the food supply chain. This has resulted in retailers having to embrace how accurately brands are being portrayed and act accordingly. 

Britain’s love affair for quality, fresh food in combination with convenience, technology and easy accessibility has opened up new frontiers in the choice of food being delivered direct to the door which has helped to shape the future of food in the UK.

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