Online grocery shopping: the customers´ perspective in the Czech Republic

Research background: Online shopping is becoming popular among most customers thanks to quickness and easy shopping, and also due the COVID pandemic. Companies are aware of the great interest of customers and, as a consequence, e-commerce is expanding. There has been a significant increase in online grocery purchases due to economic growth in the past few years. Online shopping attracts a lot of research interest, individual authors and this is a widely discussed topic. It should be borne in mind that online purchasing of food has its own peculiarities compared to the segment of electronics or fashion from the perspective of everyday needs. Purpose of the article: The aim of the study is to analyze specific consumer behaviour in online purchasing of groceries. This study takes into account the age and purchasing preferences of online grocery purchasers. Methods: The study was conducted using quantitative research. Data (n = 171) was obtained by using a questionnaire survey done in the Czech Republic. The questionnaire survey contained 17 questions. For the statistical evaluation, Chi-square test and Pearson's correlation test were used. For the statistical evaluation, Chi-square test and Pearson´s correlation test were used. Findings & value added: The results of the study indicate that there is a relationship between the age of customers and online purchase in the grocery field. However, customers who use the e-shop for grocery purchase are still reluctant to buy perishable goods (meat, pastries) and prefer goods that are packed directly by the manufacturer. The study sheds light on understanding the customers? purchasing behaviour and their preferences in terms of quality of service, payment terms, delivery conditions, and range of assortment