At the end of 2019, the online food delivery market in Poland amounted to PLN 1.3 billion, and its value for 2020 was estimated at PLN 1.7 billion, according to the e-restaurant portal. In the middle of March 2020, a quarantine was ordered, which not only changed consumer moods and habits but also revised the market of services. What was it like in the food delivery segment?
1. The year 2020 for delivery services
It started with the panic-buying of toilet paper and other basic products. The shelves in the shops were empty and, in addition, announcements appeared everywhere that it was better to stay at home, without contact with others. Then people, fearing for their health and that of their loved ones, transferred their shopping habits to various apps for ordering everything online, such as coffee to go, lunches, or necessities. At the same time, restaurants had to be closed to guests, but they could only serve take-out meals.
It can therefore be concluded that the applications that deliver various products to us at home not only protect our health but also support the economy during the times of coronavirus.
2. Every food delivery offers a “takeaway” option
Restaurateurs who did not offer take-out food before the pandemic outbreak had to introduce such a service to survive on the market. Restaurants, unable to receive customers inside, had to hire their drivers or work with food-ordering apps. During the pandemic, taking out meals turned out to be the only survival option.
3. Great income of the COVID-19
As a result of the pandemic situation and lockdown, the companies supplying food gained revenues, ahead of forecasts by several years. The biggest giants among the delivery services companies in the USA are certainly – DoorDash, Grubhub, Uber Eats, and Postmates. According to the MarketWatch portal, these companies generated revenues of about $ 5.5 million in the period from April to September 2020. This is twice as much as they managed to achieve in the same period in a previous year.
In 2020, there was a global increase in the number of installations of food ordering apps, which was 25% compared to 2019 and then 21% in 2021. In the Asia region, the number of installations was even greater in 2020, with an increase of 37%, and in North America by 30%.
According to the data provided on the Statistica website, European countries also saw an increase in the number of users of applications for ordering food. For example, in France, as many as 24% of users increased. We can also read that more than half of the people surveyed in Spain declare their willingness to use food delivery services after the end of the pandemic.
4. “Leave at the door”
The Leave at Door feature was introduced in some food ordering apps before the great coronavirus crisis. The function was created for those who want to order food with delivery, but at the same time, they aren’t at home. For example, imagine the situation when you are standing in a traffic jam on your way home from work, while the courier delivers your dinner straight to your door. Epic!
It turned out that during the pandemic, this solution was extremely popular. The option of food delivered straight to your door allowed to completely limit the contact between the ordering person and the supplier. Not only the client but also the courier remained safe from the infection.
5. A temporary trend or a new reality?
It is not known how long the epidemiological situation in Poland and the world will last, but we can expect that the society and the economy will not return to the pre-pandemic state. Both people and companies will be forced to learn to function in the new reality. We can easily assume, however, that trends in the digitization of everyday activities will remain with us after the pandemic ends. At the moment, delivery apps are focused on providing a safe and hygienic way of delivering and meeting the growing demand of consumers who spend most of their time at home due to remote work or quarantine.
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Digitalization of meal delivery service
The food delivery application industry will grow and evolve as markets shape in the post-pandemic world. To grow, it’s important that the apps work with the restaurants and retailers that best suit their users’ needs, and that they find smart ways to encourage continued use of such services.
The food delivery industry has benefited from the ongoing epidemiological situation. Restrictions on the possibility of movement or the ban on meeting in a larger group, as well as taking care of their health, have made consumers more often choose orders and deliveries via a mobile application.
