INSTANT - Integrated, Novel and Scalable Technology for Automation of delivery Networks and Systems in the online grocery market
Lead Participant:
HUBBUB DELIVERIES LIMITED
Abstract
Grocery market (worth £175B in UK) is disrupted by changing shopping habits, incl.:
1) Convenience: time-pressed shoppers fit shopping around their daily schedule, making
quick, fill-in shopping trips at convenience retailers rather than one big weekly shopping trip
(Euromonitor, 2014).
2) Polarisation: mid-priced supermarkets are losing share to upscale grocers and discounters
(Euromonitor, 2014), catering to value-driven customers with reduced shopper loyalty
(discounters in the UK grew at 15-20% p.a. in 5yrs, doubling their market share to 8% in
2015) (IGD, 2015).
3) Digitisation: small grocery shops cannot supply a full basket, timely deliveries, or build
engaging online interfaces, apps and network, and are therefore under-indexing in value sales
online: less than 5% of food retailers’ sales are online (vs 19% of total retail market) (Mintel,
2014).
Small retailers struggle to compete due to lack of access to digital infrastructure. Hubbub has
identified an opportunity to dynamically link small grocery retailers to mass consumer market
with an improved digital tool to enable small merchants to process and deliver orders
instantly. Instant helps independent grocery shops (who lack the resources to invest in
improvements to digitisation or distribution) participate in the growth of the convenience
segment. Their subsequent growth has many benefits including generating service-led UKbased
jobs which can not be offshored, automated, or deskilled.
Started in 2009 by former Human Rights Barrister Marisa Leaf, Hubbub is a home delivery
service on a mission to save the high street. Today Hubbub delivers over 10k products from
70+ independent shops across 200 London postcodes, employs a team of 22 with over 50
years of experience for companies incl. LOVEFiLM, Graze, Ocado, Natoora, PrayerApp and
Zipcar, and has received extensive media coverage in The Guardian, The Times, FT, The
Telegraph, the Evening Standard and Country Life.
1) Convenience: time-pressed shoppers fit shopping around their daily schedule, making
quick, fill-in shopping trips at convenience retailers rather than one big weekly shopping trip
(Euromonitor, 2014).
2) Polarisation: mid-priced supermarkets are losing share to upscale grocers and discounters
(Euromonitor, 2014), catering to value-driven customers with reduced shopper loyalty
(discounters in the UK grew at 15-20% p.a. in 5yrs, doubling their market share to 8% in
2015) (IGD, 2015).
3) Digitisation: small grocery shops cannot supply a full basket, timely deliveries, or build
engaging online interfaces, apps and network, and are therefore under-indexing in value sales
online: less than 5% of food retailers’ sales are online (vs 19% of total retail market) (Mintel,
2014).
Small retailers struggle to compete due to lack of access to digital infrastructure. Hubbub has
identified an opportunity to dynamically link small grocery retailers to mass consumer market
with an improved digital tool to enable small merchants to process and deliver orders
instantly. Instant helps independent grocery shops (who lack the resources to invest in
improvements to digitisation or distribution) participate in the growth of the convenience
segment. Their subsequent growth has many benefits including generating service-led UKbased
jobs which can not be offshored, automated, or deskilled.
Started in 2009 by former Human Rights Barrister Marisa Leaf, Hubbub is a home delivery
service on a mission to save the high street. Today Hubbub delivers over 10k products from
70+ independent shops across 200 London postcodes, employs a team of 22 with over 50
years of experience for companies incl. LOVEFiLM, Graze, Ocado, Natoora, PrayerApp and
Zipcar, and has received extensive media coverage in The Guardian, The Times, FT, The
Telegraph, the Evening Standard and Country Life.
Lead Participant | Project Cost | Grant Offer |
|---|---|---|
| HUBBUB DELIVERIES LIMITED | £555,196 | £ 249,838 |
People |
ORCID iD |
| Roger Ahn (Project Manager) |