One-third of urban Indian shoppers use Q-Commerce for groceries: report

Signaling a shift in consumers’ behavior in India, NielsenIQ(NIQ) revealed in its report that 31% of Indian shoppers in urban areas are relying on quick commerce for their daily grocery needs, and over 39% are using it to top up their purchases.

NIQ, a firm offering consumer behavior intelligence, shared in its latest Shopper Trend report, compiled after conducting a survey of 4,500 consumers in India, that close to 42% of urban shoppers are using quick commerce to purchase ready-to-eat meals, and 45% use it for salty snacks.

In its other ‘Mid-Year Consumer Outlook Guide’ tapping the shopping trends for the next year, NIQ reported that, unlike consumers in the rest of the world, more consumers in Indonesia, India, South Africa, and Brazil mentioned that their financial condition did not worsen in mid-2024 as compared to the same time last year. The consumers in the rest of the world, however, shared that their financial situation is worse in mid-2024 than it was in mid-2023; 76% attributed increased cost of living, economic slowdown (41%), and job insecurity (31%) were some of the reasons responsible for tight wallets.

They are stating that with the rapid pace of change in what cycles ‘in’ and ‘out’ of trend, companies need to invest in the correct data to guide what priorities lie on the horizon. Lauren Fernandes, Vice President of global thought leadership, marketing, and communications at NIQ, wrote, “Some consumers are kicking the tires on futuristic advancements in artificial intelligence that haven’t yet earned their trust. Meanwhile, millions of others are embracing a full spectrum of life changes surrounding the use of GLP-1 medications.” Adding that anticipating the road to earn trust can be slow, Fernandes shared, “But those who can earnestly bridge the gaps to inspire behavioral change are most likely to succeed in the long run.”

The data by the World Data Lab predicted that India would surpass China, bringing in 47 million new consumers as compared with China’s expected 30 million. Many emerging markets comprise the 17 markets that will see at least 1 million new consumers added to the world consumer class in 2025. The US, which is expected to add 2.4 million new consumers in 2025, stands among them.

On the flip side, the report revealed that Japan alone is a loss leader in this regard, with consumer headcount expected to shrink by a massive 3.6 million between now and 2030.

The report mentioned this is a warning sign for companies with a vast Japanese consumer base.

The report showed that consumers must still be ready to embrace AI integrations in everyday purchasing and living. Still, they seem open to some tech-enabled shopping experiences.

Gen Z (46%) and Millennial (48%) consumers would use AI to automate or speed up their everyday shopping decisions, while just 34% of Gen X and 20% of Boomer respondents feel the same.