This article is from the WeChat public account: East Forty Capital (ID: DsstCapital) , author: Making of Chai good news
Did you grab the food today?
Alarms in the middle of the night, hard to find a dish, overtime orders … For millions of families, the “vegetable defense battle” every day in this special stage is a tough battle.
Facing the sudden “home feast”, the fresh e-commerce business that used to be alive and lingering in the past is like a long drought.
From “beloved” to “abandoned child”, fresh food e-commerce has experienced ups and downs several times. Is the traffic outbreak a phased dividend for the industry or an inflection point to turn a profit? The market education and user habits brought about by this wave of “free customer acquisition” have made fresh e-commerce win the glory of “beloved” again?
The daily surge in activity
Under the current “grocery shopping” trend, fresh e-commerce platform sales have reached record highs.
Investment.com understands that during the Spring Festival, the sales volume of JD.com ’s fresh food platform increased by 470% compared with the same period in 2019; the daily order volume of Meituan in Beijing reached 2-3 times the pre-holiday order. ; The multi-channel Dmall-to-store-to-home omnichannel unit volume increased 89% year-on-year in the same period of 2019, and the overall sales reached 4.2 billion yuan, an increase of 132% year-on-year; New Year’s Eve to the fourth day of the year, the daily transaction volume of the Youxin platform was higher than the same period of 2019. Increased 321%; in the 30th year of the New Year, the order for Ding Dong to buy vegetables increased by over 300% year-on-year.
“During the epidemic, the extreme conditions allowed users to fully appreciate the value provided by fresh food retail companies-to make users assured ‘vegetable baskets’, so that people can eat parity every dayFresh dishes. “ Han Rui, Managing Director of Gao Rong Capital, said to CIC.
In the short term, a large number of new users have been promoted, and “free customer acquisition” has become the biggest benefit in front of various fresh e-commerce platforms.
“I used to visit the supermarket regularly. I didn’t have the habit of buying food online and didn’t register on any platform. This outbreak not only registered four or five platforms, but also bought two monthly members. “Meng Zixin, who lives in Chaoyang District, Beijing, told CIC.” Also, many seniors visiting the vegetable market have changed their minds and asked their children to help them place orders online and deliver food to the gates of the community. “
Meng Zixin and other user-driven platform daily activities have always been regarded as an important indicator to measure the stickiness of fresh e-commerce users.
“If the platform usually breaks through such a single quantity, it will cost a lot of money, and the cost is very high. But now, basically, every household has naturally generated such a large increase. In addition, consumption The habits of the participants have also further precipitated. “Weng Yinuo, founding partner of Hongzhang Capital, told CIC.
However, “After the epidemic has passed, platform data will definitely come down. However, this wave has still educated consumers, so this is actually an important turning point for the platform. “ Weng Yinuo also mentioned.
Unexpected examination under traffic peaks
“The demand for orders has increased sharply, and the delivery capacity was once inadequate.” Multipoint Dmall bluntly spoke to China Investment Network. “In the extreme case of the Spring Festival and the epidemic, orders are up and artificially tight. The platform of the digital system is a major test, including the control and selection of product categories, and the adjustment of store-to-home orders. “
In fact, in this “vegetable basket” battle, almost all e-commerce platforms are facing challenges from the commodity supply chain.
“In the early hours of the day before yesterday, I grabbed more than 200 dishes online, including the ingredients for breakfast. But the platform promised that the goods can be delivered before 9 am, but not yet at 10.30.” Meng Zixin told the cast China Open.
Unfortunately, the phone reminder. “Too many orders, delivery may be delayed, but to ensure delivery on the same day, please wait patiently.” Merchants apologizep> In other words, this is not a short-term outlet, but a long-term battle.
Han Rui recognizes the value of the word “long-term” for fresh e-commerce. “In the long term, fresh e-commerce companies must gain user trust through continuous and deterministic services, and then continue to penetrate the share of consumer wallets, and eventually build infrastructure-level companies.”
“Affected by the epidemic nationwide, the next year will present both opportunities and challenges for fresh produce e-commerce companies.” Dmall told Dianzhong.com, “On the one hand, the fresh-to-home model affected by the epidemic is welcome. It has exploded. Behind this, it has reflected the shortcomings and problems of various companies in the supply chain, logistics and digital technology to varying degrees. In the future, the integration of store-to-home integration will become the mainstream model, and all links in the retail chain will be digital The level will determine the future trend of the fresh food e-commerce market. “
(In response to the interviewee’s request, Meng Zixin, Hu Xingfeng, and Lu Xin are aliases)
This article comes from WeChat public account: East Forty Capitals (ID: DsstCapital) , author: Making of Chai good news