Rewe has announced plans to invest in its online services, including launching a meal kit delivery service in Germany.
Rewe's online delivery service
Rewe recently launched a new app for its online shopping site and has been working to provide customers with more flexible and convenient ways to shop. Its new app has improved functionality and customers can now order and pay for their groceries all in one go. The retailer has also announced that it will expand its click & collect station network throughout 2017, with a particular focus on smaller towns and rural areas. The pick up service has no minimum value order and a fee of only €2. There are currently 15 pick up locations but Rewe has plans to expand this to 73 cities across Germany.
Meal kit market gathering pace
HelloFresh, which originated in Berlin, launched in 2012 and has become increasingly popular. In the first nine months of 2016 is achieved worldwide sales of €440m ($472m), double its sales in the same period of 2015. A number of similar start ups have also since entered the German market including Kochhaus and Kochzauber, but Rewe is the first major grocery retailer to introduce the service.
Its meal kit service builds on Rewe's online offer, with customers able to choose a recipe and select from recommended ingredients according to price and brand. This gives more flexibility and choice to the customer than the HelloFresh model, but targets the same customers who are looking to save time but still cook at home.
Multichannel focus
The introduction of the meal kit solution demonstrates Rewe's commitment to strengthening its multichannel offer, creating convenient ways for shoppers to purchase their groceries and save time. The advantage of purchasing a meal kit from a supermarket chain is that the service is combined with the online ordering service, allowing customers to purchase their usual groceries as well as the specific meal kits. This increases its convenience to shoppers and means that they only need to make one order from one place for all their grocery needs.
More on Rewe's supply chain
Check out our Rewe Group supply chain snapshot for an essential summary of supply chain priorities, latest network developments, and other key statistics for the retailer.