Supply chain of the future: impact of the pandemic and the future prospect of food & grocery industry business in Singapore

Abstract

Despite the challenges COVID-19 has brought to the food and grocery industry, many opportunities have arose from these challenges as businesses adapt and seek alternative ways to ensure their survivability. Of these alternatives, some have already been in the industry such as having an online platform for customers to place their orders. However, COVID-19 has accelerated the shift in how food and grocery businesses carry out their operations and their reach to customers. During this period, customer expectations have soared, and businesses not only compete on their products but also the quality of customer service.

In this report, the aim is to examine the impact of the pandemic on the food and grocery industry, in particular – customer expectations for online food and grocery delivery services. The report will analyse customer experience and explore the use of data analytics to create customer relationships and engagement. A survey was conducted to understand the perspective of consumers, and to get a sense of consumers’ preference when shopping for food and grocery online. Interviews have also been conducted to understand the pain points and opportunities in the industry.

At the end of the analysis, the report will then propose strategies to tackle real world problems that key industry players face and to help businesses better position themselves to meet the ever-increasing customer expectations. This paper will be centred around the use of data analytics to provide recommendations.