GROCERY shopping-solution provider HappyFresh was officially launched on Tuesday in the Philippines, initially covering the Metro Manila area and, eventually, expanding its reach to other key cities across the country.
HappyFresh Philippines Managing Director Isabel Barrientos said the worsening traffic situation in the country, like other megacities in Asia, makes such a business model fit for the consumers who are, more often than not, time-strapped to push their way through a crowded supermarket after a long day at work.
“So, No. 1 is the convenience, No. 2 is really the time that you save, and No. 3, it’s very personalized,” he said of the benefits that the shopping public can gain from using their platform. “It’s almost like a concierge service. You go in [the grocery store through our personal shoppers and] you get what you want. It’s your right hand or your helping hand, and, as we say, it’s like your best friend. That for us is what really sets us apart. And we’ve quantified that it usually takes about six hours to go grocery shopping—at least. We’ll be humble and say we can save you four hours, and you can get to spend more time with your family and your kids.”
The executive also cited the high mobile and Internet penetration rate in the country that makes HappyFresh suitable for the local market.
Currently, 46 percent of the entire population is present online and spends an average of 5.2 hours per day on the Web, thus, making the Philippines the second-highest Internet consuming country per capita in the entire world, next only to Brazil. Of the 44-percent Internet penetration rate in the country today, 40 percent comes from mobile.
Asia’s leading hyperlocal food-tech company enables consumers to shop in their favorite grocery retailers via the mobile and web platforms.
To do so, clients need to download the application of HappyFresh in iOS and Android smartphones, or just make orders using their desktops, laptops/notebooks, or tablets.
Once done placing their orders, personal shoppers stationed in partner-retailers will do the shopping and then turn them over to the riders for delivery right at the customers’ doorsteps within an hour.
On top of store price, add-on charges will be included, such as P149 fixed rate for delivery fee and shopper’s fee, depending on the size or volume metric and other considerations.
At present, HappyFresh has a tie-up with Robinsons Supermarket and Robinsons Selections, and soon with other supermarkets, as well as specialty stores, like butchers, bakers, wine and drug stores.
“Robinsons is very progressive. They understand e-commerce. In fact, they have a web site of their own in appliances. So they are the most likely partner for us to deal with,” Barrientos said.
Since its introduction here in May 2016, the company already has a following from customers who are mostly females (81 percent) aged 25 to 34 (29 percent), with average combined spending of P12,000 per month. To date, shoppers who turn to HappyFresh come from Makati (24 percent), Manila (20 percent), Quezon City (15 percent) and Taguig (13 percent).
About 1,000 customers have downloaded the app in their iOS phones, while 1,500 in Android-run smartphones. Around 200 to 300 downloads are added weekly.
Performance-wise, HappyFresh in the Philippines has already achieved over 90-percent rating in on-time delivery and 4.7 out of five-star grade for average customer satisfaction.
It can accommodate 10 orders to 12 orders per store per day. While transactions are currently paid in cash-on-delivery, the company will start accepting major credit cards within this month.
Also, HappyFresh will become available in greater Metro Manila areas in the next six months and in other key cities nationwide in 2017.
“So for someone that’s been opened for a month, we’re very pleased with the results. If you compare us to a country in the region that opened last year, so far we are the ‘best performer’ at this stage. So we plan on continuing this growth; acquiring new customers so that they know about us; acquiring new merchants; and continuing our four-and-a-half rating and above. It’s all about the customer experience. We’re here to help people,” Barrientos said.
Founded in October 2014 by seasoned entrepreneurs, HappyFresh partners with established retailers to offer customers more choices at a wide range of price point.
It is headquartered in Jakarta and has operations in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Taiwan and, now, the Philippines.
(With Tam Natividad)