FOOD

Coles is taking its online grocery offering a step further with the launch of a new subscription service that allows customers to make unlimited orders for a flat monthly fee.

E-commerce is knocking out the physical stores. Between 2017 and 2018, the number of retail stores decreased by 6 percent from 35,953 stores to 33,688 in Sweden.

That the grocery giant ICA, in Sweden, does not take market shares, but retains its position as a strong market leader in Sweden is not unexpected, but nonetheless a fact. Good purchasing conditions and efficient operations are the background, but the ICA boss is probably more concerned about market shares than he might like to stress.

Online grocery sales are still not a particularly large market compared to physical grocery sales, but the area is growing, and several large chains such as Coop, Bilka and Netto are already “on the ball”.