Rapid grocer Gopuff has started price matching or beating Tesco Express on 100 selected products.
The price matching is done on a weekly basis, the rapid grocer said, against two Tesco Express stores in Shoreditch and Camden in London – two areas served by the ultra-fast convenience delivery player.
The list of products price matched by Gopuff is wholly made up of branded goods across all categories.
“From the outset, Gopuff has been committed to the customer experience, delivering a unique and relevant assortment of products at a great price,” Gopuff’s UK general manager Alberto Menolascina told The Grocer.
“While many believe that incredible convenience must come at a price, our vertically integrated business model and scale enable us to offer customers both convenience and great value on a broad assortment of items every day,” he added.
The activity does not include “any discounts, multibuy offers, Clubcard Prices or other personal discounts such as product vouchers, staff or NHS discounts” offered by Tesco, Gopuff said.
Tesco offers Clubcard Prices – which cover around 3,000 products in any given week – in Express stores, although the deals differ from larger stores. Gopuff has its own loyalty scheme, with which users earn Puff Points on purchases, which they can redeem for various rewards.
The price matching move is understood to be the first by a UK rapid grocer, which typically cover their significant delivery costs with both delivery fees and considerable mark-up on products.
According to March research by Wavemaker UK, value is more of a priority among rapid grocery customers than range or availability of preferred brands.
Nearly half (44%) of surveyed consumers said a low delivery charge was their priority when choosing a rapid brand, with a third saying good deals or special offers on products was most important. The proportion saying so far outweighed those who said the main draw was their preferred branded products being available.
“If a user can get the same low in-store prices on products they want via the rapid delivery services, then that becomes an additional draw for them to use the service. This is not only true for existing users but non-users who may have been debating the value of these services,” said Monica Majumdar, head of strategy at Wavemaker UK.
The research also found essentials were more commonly bought from rapid dark store operators than indulgence products. Fresh and frozen food was the most popular food category to purchase using the services, bought by 71% of users. This was followed by store cupboard essentials (66%) and confectionery & snacks (53%).
“Since they launched, rapid grocery delivery services have given discount codes offering large savings on grocery shopping or free/lower-cost delivery,” Majumdar added.
“However, what we are seeing is that the value for the rapid grocery delivery users is not only, or always, these sort of offers. They are interested in deals and special offers on specific products and brands – akin to what can be seen in store.”
No comments yet