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Grocery or @grocery: A stated preference investigation in Rome and Milan

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  • Maltese, Ila
  • Le Pira, Michela
  • Marcucci, Edoardo
  • Gatta, Valerio
  • Evangelinos, Christos

Abstract

Despite the huge growth in online purchases, e-grocery (i.e. ordering grocery online) was still limited in scope in Italy so far. More recently, its growth has been substantial and 2020 witnessed a huge increase due to COVID-19-related mobility restrictions. In principle, e-grocery could reduce the number of shopping trips, yet an exponential increase in shipping and deliveries could have a negative impact on the environment. In order to explore the willingness to e-grocery, and delivery preferences (self-delivery, home delivered grocery or collected in a specific place) - and estimate their market shares - a stated preference survey was carried in Rome and Milan. Respondents were asked about their grocery shopping habits and to choose among different shopping and delivery options. Discrete choice modelling allows investigating preference heterogeneity and estimating willingness to pay measures. Main results indicate that respondents, characterised by distinct socio-economic, attitudinal, and geographical elements, react differently to attribute variations for alternative grocery shopping channels. Scenario simulations can help in defining successful business-strategies and possible solutions to external costs. Under this respect, results suggest that the best strategy to increase e-grocery shares in the two cities should be non-monetary, but rather aimed at expanding the product range available online.

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  • Maltese, Ila & Le Pira, Michela & Marcucci, Edoardo & Gatta, Valerio & Evangelinos, Christos, 2021. "Grocery or @grocery: A stated preference investigation in Rome and Milan," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:retrec:v:87:y:2021:i:c:s0739885921000688
    DOI: 10.1016/j.retrec.2021.101096
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    3. Prencipe, Luigi Pio & Colovic, Aleksandra & Binetti, Mario & Ottomanelli, Michele, 2024. "Zero-emission vehicle adoption towards sustainable e-grocery last-mile delivery," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 104(C).
    4. Alves, Roberta & Pereira, Cecília Aparecida & Lima, Renato da Silva, 2023. "Operational cost analysis for e-commerce deliveries using agent-based modeling and simulation," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    5. Rossolov, Oleksandr & Susilo, Yusak O., 2024. "Are consumers ready to pay extra for crowd-shipping e-groceries and why? A hybrid choice analysis for developing economies," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 187(C).
    6. Oleksandr Rossolov & Yusak O. Susilo, 2023. "Are consumers ready to pay extra for crowd-shipping e-groceries and why? A hybrid choice analysis for developing economies," Papers 2303.07044, arXiv.org.
    7. Liu, Qiyang & Liu, Zhengying & Kang, Tingting & Zhu, Le & Zhao, Pengjun, 2022. "Transport inequities through the lens of environmental racism: Rural-urban migrants under Covid-19," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 26-38.
    8. Vyt, Dany & Jara, Magali & Mevel, Olivier & Morvan, Thierry & Morvan, Nélida, 2022. "The impact of convenience in a click and collect retail setting: A consumer-based approach," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 248(C).
    9. Marcucci, Edoardo & Gatta, Valerio & de Oliveira Leite Nascimento, Carla & Aziz, Soukaina & Ayagah, Prince & Montero, Tania, 2024. "The environmental impact of buying groceries online/offline pre and during COVID-19. Any changes?," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 222-233.
    10. Beckers, Joris & Cardenas, Ivan & Le Pira, Michela & Zhang, Jia, 2023. "Exploring Logistics-as-a-Service to integrate the consumer into urban freight," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    e-grocery; Last mile delivery; Home delivery; click&pick; City logistics; Discrete Choice Models; Multinomial Logit; Consumer behaviour;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • R41 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - Transportation: Demand, Supply, and Congestion; Travel Time; Safety and Accidents; Transportation Noise
    • R22 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Other Demand

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