How China’s delivery services platforms are evolving, from smart lockers to ‘semi-finished’ meals
- This is the eighth in a series on the impact of the coronavirus on China’s technology sector
- The food delivery boom has been a lifesaver for many restaurants in China as they flock to online channels amid social distancing
Stuck at home, can’t go to the store to buy food, too tired to cook – “Let’s get a food delivery!”
That has been an increasingly common refrain for millions of people around the world confined to their homes amid the coronavirus crisis, with lockdowns and social distancing measures forcing more into online consumption.
In China, which has the largest food delivery services market in the world, worth over 603 billion yuan (US$85.4 billion) in 2019, it has not been a simple case of more demand and increased sales – the impact has been more nuanced.
Delivery platforms such as Meituan-Dianping and Alibaba’s Ele.me, which together dominate 90 per cent of the market in China, have had to evolve. Many people have opted for groceries over meals for fear of being infected, and platforms have had to innovate with ‘contactless deliveries’ and ‘semi-finished products’.
The grocery delivery services market had an estimated 70 million monthly active users in the month after the Lunar New Year holiday in China, up 59 per cent from the same period a year ago, according to QuestMobile.
Beyond the core of food delivery, Meituan and Ele.me have expanded into books and cosmetics as people diversify their consumption habits amid stay-at-home policies. In early April, Ele.me announced that consumers could buy Huawei smartphones via its delivery service, hot on the heels of Meituan offering to deliver beauty products from Sephora.
