Food shopping and the retail industry changed forever with the advent of the modern supermarket in the early 1900s.
Consumers receptive to the concept of self-selecting food, consumables and other products essential for daily living in one location adjusted their purchase patterns and fuelled growth of the supermarket industry.
Supermarkets represented a new approach to food shopping and shopping in general. As the name implied, the supermarket created a new set of expectations and elevated the store experience for shoppers who were accustomed to the more limited and food-oriented product assortment of traditional grocery stores. The larger format supermarkets were able to elevate the food shopping experience through increased offerings and more appealing merchandise presentations designed to stimulate demand. Supermarkets also satisfied a broader range of shoppers’ needs, because they were larger and could allocate the increased selling space to product categories such as household essentials, non-food products, health and beauty aids and ancillary departments such as pharmacies, bakery, floral, banking, dry cleaners and movie rentals.
The combination of product categories, services and store experience proved popular with shoppers who were leading increasingly busy lifestyles and valued the convenience of a retail format that allowed them to satisfy a broader range of needs at a single store.
Supermarkets became the largest single retail channel in advanced economies and their large market share made them a target of competitors. The traditional supermarket industry has come under tremendous pressure, particularly in the United States, where large format stores, known as supercenters, gained favor with shoppers. Additional pressures were exerted as alternative retail channels such as drug stores, dollar stores and hard discount stores with limited assortments and sharp pricing, expanded offerings of food and consumables as a means to generate traffic.
Despite significant challenges in recent decades, the supermarket remains a dominant format characterized by food as its core product offering. The concept of the supermarket continues to evolve to keep pace with shifting family structures and lifestyles that affect consumption patterns. An increased emphasis on the availability of prepared or easy-to-prepare foods at some supermarkets has led to an increasingly blurred distinction between the traditional supermarket and some segments of the food service industry.
Contribution to Retail History
The supermarket revolutionized food shopping in the early 1900s based on an extensive selection of food and non-food products, self-service, competitive prices, brands, and convenience under one roof. Supermarkets remain the dominant channel of retailing as well as innovators in new technology, distribution, food safety, e-commerce, delivery and new products such as organic and proprietary brands.