Grocery Stores Facing a New Challenge

In the pre-digital era, people shopped for groceries by making a list of things they needed before heading out to a supermarket or other store to purchase them. Perhaps they were influenced by newspaper circulars, television ads, or even direct mailings, but most decisions were based on need as well as what was on store shelves. That's why how items are placed in a grocery store is a science and it's why brands pay for displays, prime locations, and other highly visible real estate.

Those things still have their place, but more than half (51%) of grocery purchases are digitally influenced, according to a new report from Deloitte. It's not that most consumers are buying their groceries online, it's that their buying choices have been made before they leave the house based on what they see online.

People's grocery choices are influenced by what they do online. Image source: Getty Images.

Source: Fool.com