Omnichannel Strategies Helping Grocery Stores Thrive

oday’s grocery shoppers expect convenience, speed, and flexibility. To stay competitive, grocery retailers are leveraging omnichannel strategies to meet these needs. An omnichannel strategy connects various online and offline shopping channels including physical stores, mobile apps, and eCommerce websites into a cohesive experience. Customers can shop however they prefer, whether that means browsing online and picking up in-store, ordering groceries through an app, or receiving home delivery. 

Omnichannel grocery shopping is on the rise, as over 90% of shoppers participate in both online and in-store shopping, according to a new report by FMI and NielsenIQ. From curbside pickup to digital offers, omnichannel shopping is reshaping how consumers shop for groceries and how businesses stay competitive. 

Here’s a look at some strategies helping grocery stores enhance their omnichannel presence, broaden their customer base, and optimize omnichannel fulfillment operations.

Brick-and-mortar grocery retailers are leveraging technology to expand their eCommerce capabilities as online grocery shopping continues to grow. The U.S. online grocery market ended January 2025 with $10 billion in monthly sales, a 16.6% increase over last year, according to the new Brick Meets Click/Mercatus Grocery Shopper Survey. Nearly half of consumers said they are spending more of their grocery budget online than they did last year. While, 79% of shoppers plan to maintain or increase their online grocery shopping over the next year, according to the latest survey from the Feedback Group.

Retailers are partnering with companies to launch eCommerce channels, creating more opportunities for increasing sales, improving customer experiences, and boosting customer engagement. HAC Inc., an operator of 74 supermarkets in Oklahoma and Texas, is deploying Local Express’ Made-to-Order omnichannel solution to modernize the prepared foods, catering and food services operations. Homeland shoppers can now place customizable orders for holiday family meals, party trays, and more from their homes or offices. Customers can easily schedule deliveries or pickups, customize orders and receive personalized recommendations. 

Mobile apps have become an essential tool for engaging customers. Grocery retailers are using apps to offer product discounts, send real-time promotions, and allow customers to create shopping lists. Earth Fare is expanding its partnership with Flashfood, rolling out Flashfood’s app-based service at three additional stores. Flashfood, which allows users to purchase grocery staples nearing their best-by date at a greatly reduced price, launched its Flashfood for Independents functionality last summer with the help of Earth Fare and other independent grocers.

In less than six months, Flashfood has helped Earth Fare’s Greenville location save shoppers more than $17,000 on groceries while also diverting over 9,000 pounds of food from landfills. The retailer has also seen an influx of new customers looking for deals. Earth Fare plans to roll out Flashfood functionality to additional stores over time.

Grocers are implementing new fulfillment solutions and expanding their fulfillment network to adapt to increasing customer demand, deliver orders faster, and help drive omnichannel growth. H-E-B has opened a new eCommerce fulfillment center in Houston. The facility will support H-E-B Curbside and Home Delivery orders throughout Houston and surrounding cities. The grocer intends to open additional facilities across Texas to help support its expansion. With these centers, H-E-B has grown supply chain capacity and increased efficiency, which has improved and powered the expansion of its curbside pickup and home delivery services. 

To streamline online orders, increase fulfillment speed, and boost productivity, retailers are using various forms of automation, while technology companies continue to develop automated fulfillment systems. Dematic is teaming up with Transcend Retail Solutions to introduce the Transcend Micro-Fulfillment Center (MFC). The new MFC offers a scalable and repeatable setup that increases order capacity and reduces store congestion. The MFC streamlines fulfillment and provides real-time insights and optimizations, making it easier for store workers to manage inventory quickly and fill orders.

As grocery retail continues to evolve, omnichannel strategies are helping supermarkets blend digital and physical channels, and offer seamless, unified, and convenient shopping experiences. 

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