Editing Grocery store

{{Short description|Retail store that primarily sells food and other household supplies}}
{{About||a large grocery store|Supermarket|a fruit and vegetable grocery store|Greengrocer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
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|image1                   = Westside Market in Manhattan, NYC IMG 5615.JPG
|caption1                 = Grocery store on the Upper West Side of Manhattan
|image2                   = Kosher Cajun Metairie Louisiana Dec 2018 02-cropped.jpg
|caption2                 = Delicatessen & Grocery in Metairie, Louisiana
|image3                   = Ishtar Ethnic Food, West Bloomfield Township, Michigan - 20201214-cropped.jpg
|caption3                 = Ethnic grocery, West Bloomfield Twp, Michigan
|image4                   = Brockenhurst Convenience Store - geograph.org.uk - 4978448.jpg
|caption4                 = Convenience Store in Brockenhurst, United Kingdom
|image5                   = Best organic produce Toronto.jpg
|caption5                 = Organic grocery in Toronto, Canada
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A '''grocery store''' ([[American English|AE]]), '''grocery shop''' or '''grocer's shop''' ([[British English|BE]]) or simply '''grocery'''<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://culinarylore.com/food-history:origin-of-grocer/|title=Origin of the Word Grocer|website=culinarylore.com|date=19 March 2013 |access-date=May 12, 2022}}</ref> is a [[retail]] store that primarily retails a general range of food [[Product (business)|products]],<ref name=naics/> which may be [[Fresh food|fresh]] or [[Food preservation|packaged]]. In everyday US usage, however, "grocery store" is a synonym for [[supermarket]],<ref name=oxford/> and is not used to refer to other types of stores that sell '''groceries'''. In the UK, shops that sell food are distinguished as grocers<ref name=oxford/> or grocery shops (though in everyday use, people usually use either the term "supermarket" or a "[[corner shop]]".)

Larger types of stores that sell groceries, such as [[supermarket]]s and [[hypermarket]]s, usually stock significant amounts of non-food products, such as [[clothing]] and [[Household hardware|household items]]. Small grocery stores that sell mainly fruit and vegetables are known as [[greengrocer]]s (Britain) or produce markets (US), and small grocery stores that predominantly sell prepared food, such as candy and snacks, are known as [[convenience shop]]s or [[delicatessen]]s.{{Citation needed|date=July 2020}}

==Definition==
The definition of "grocery store" varies; US and Canadian official definitions of "grocery store" exclude some businesses that sell groceries, such as convenience stores.

===United States===
In the United States,
* the ''[[Merriam-Webster Dictionary]]'' defines a grocery store as "a store that sells food and household supplies : supermarket". In other words, in common US usage, "grocery store" is a synonym for supermarket.<ref>{{cite web |title=Grocery store |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grocery%20store |website=Merriam-Webster Dictionary |access-date=July 13, 2020}}</ref> The ''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'' notes that the term "grocery store" in American English is often used to mean "supermarket".<ref name=oxford>{{cite web |title=Grocery |url=https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/us/definition/english/grocery_1?q=grocery+store |website=Oxford Learner's Dictionary |access-date=July 13, 2020}}</ref>
* the US and Canadian governments have a wider definition of grocery stores, not limiting them to supermarkets. The category of business ([[NAICS]] code 4551) "Grocery stores" is defined as "primarily engaged in retailing a general line of food products",<ref name=naics>{{Cite web|url=https://www23.statcan.gc.ca/imdb/p3VD.pl?Function=getVD&TVD=118464&CVD=118467&CPV=4451&CST=01012012&CLV=1&MLV=5|title="4451", North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Canada 2012|date=20 October 2011 }}</ref> and the subcategory (NAICS code 455110), "Supermarkets and Other Grocery (except Convenience) Stores" is defined as "establishments generally known as supermarkets and grocery stores, primarily engaged in retailing a general line of food, such as canned and frozen foods; fresh fruits and vegetables; and fresh and prepared meats, fish, and poultry. Included in this industry are delicatessen-type establishments primarily engaged in retailing a general line of food.

===United Kingdom===
In the United Kingdom, terms in common usage include "supermarket" (for larger grocery stores), "corner shop",<ref name=corner>{{cite news |last1=Haider |first1=Area |title=A cultural history of the beloved corner shop |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/culture/article/20200325-a-cultural-history-of-the-beloved-corner-shop |agency=Culture (BBC) |publisher=BBC |date=March 25, 2020}}</ref> "convenience shop", or "grocery" (meaning a grocery shop) for smaller stores. "Grocery store", being a North American term, is not used. The Oxford English Dictionary states that a "grocery" is (especially in [[British English]]) a shop that sells food and other things used in the home.<ref name=oxford/>

The UK government does not define "grocery (shop)" or "supermarket" nor a distinction between them, but defines the types of store formats (whether they sell groceries, or otherwise):<ref>{{cite web |title=The grocery market: The OFT's reasons for making a reference to the Competition Commission |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/555de47840f0b669c4000141/oft845.pdf |publisher=Office of Fair Trading (UK Government) |access-date=July 13, 2020 |page=5|date=May 2006}}</ref>
* "One-stop shops" as over 1,400 square metres (15,000 square feet)
* "Mid-range stores": between 280 and 1,400 square metres (3,000 and 15,000 square feet), and
* "Convenience stores": less than 280 square metres (3,000 square feet)

===India===
90% of the 810-billion-dollar Indian food and grocery market sales are at the 12 million small grocery stores, called ''kirana''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.indianretailer.com/article/sector-watch/food-and-grocery/How-Indian-grocery-business-is-becoming-big.a6147/|title=How Indian grocery business is becoming big?|website=Indian Retailer}}</ref>

==History==
===Early history===
[[File:Gerard Dou - The Grocer's Shop - WGA06636.jpg|thumb|left|upright=0.56|Painting: 'The Grocer's Shop,' 1647]]

Beginning as early as the 14th century, a grocer (or "purveyor") was a dealer in comestible [[dry goods]] such as [[spices]], [[Bell pepper|peppers]], [[Sugarloaf|sugar]], and (later) [[Cocoa solids|cocoa]], [[tea]], and [[coffee]]. Because these items were often bought in bulk, they were named after the French word for wholesaler, or "grossier". This, in turn, is derived from the Medieval Latin term "grossarius",<ref>{{cite news|title=Grocer
|work=Oxford English Dictionary|edition=2nd |date=1989}}</ref> from which the term "gross" (meaning a quantity of 12 dozen, or 144) is also derived.

[[File:Epicerie moderne.jpg|thumb|Grocer's shop in [[Paris, France]], 1904]]
From the late 1600s until the 1850s, the word "grocery" referred to a [[Bar (establishment)|place where people went to drink]].<ref>{{cite web |title=What The Word 'Grocery' Originally Meant |date=12 Jun 2022 |author=Autumn Swiers |website=Tasting Table |url=https://www.tastingtable.com/892888/what-the-word-grocery-originally-meant/}}</ref>

As increasing numbers of [[staple food]]-stuffs became available in [[Canning|cans]] and other less-perishable packaging, the trade expanded its province.  Today, grocers deal in a wide range of staple food-stuffs including such perishables as [[dairy product]]s, [[meat]]s, and [[produce]]. Such goods are, hence, called ''groceries''. <ref>{{Cite web|title=What does grocer mean?|url=https://www.definitions.net/definition/grocer|access-date=2021-09-09|website=www.definitions.net}}</ref>

Many rural areas still contain general stores that sell goods ranging from tobacco products to imported napkins. Traditionally, general stores have offered credit to their customers, a system of payment that works on trust rather than modern [[credit card]]s. This allowed farm families to buy staples until their harvest could be sold. {{citation needed|date=August 2017}}

===Modernization===
[[File:Piggly Wiggly 1918.jpg|thumb|left|200px|[[Piggly Wiggly]] was the first [[self-service]] grocery store, opening in 1916.]]
The first [[self-service]] grocery store, [[Piggly Wiggly]], was opened in 1916 in [[Memphis, Tennessee]], by [[Clarence Saunders (grocer)|Clarence Saunders]], an inventor and entrepreneur.<ref name="[[Piggly Wiggly History]]">{{Cite web|url=http://www.pigglywiggly.com/about-us|title=About Us &#124; Piggly Wiggly|website=www.pigglywiggly.com}}</ref><ref name="[[TN History for Kids]]">{{cite web |url=http://www.tnhistoryforkids.org/people/clarence_saunders |title=Tennessee History for Kids |publisher=Tnhistoryforkids.org |access-date=2015-03-06 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150223135341/http://www.tnhistoryforkids.org/people/clarence_saunders |archive-date=2015-02-23 }}</ref> Prior to this innovation, grocery stores operated "over the counter," with customers asking a grocer to retrieve items from inventory. Saunders' invention allowed a much smaller number of clerks to service the customers, proving successful (according to a 1929 issue of ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'') "partly because of its novelty, partly because neat packages and large advertising appropriations have made retail grocery selling almost an automatic procedure."<ref name="Time 1929">{{cite magazine|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,880518,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205185025/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,880518,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 5, 2009|title=Piggly Wiggly Man |magazine=Time | date=1929-02-25 | access-date=2010-05-04}}</ref>

The early supermarkets began as [[Chain store|chains]] of grocer's shops. The development of supermarkets and other large grocery stores has meant that smaller grocery stores often must create a [[niche market]] by selling unique, premium quality, or ethnic foods that are not easily found in supermarkets. A small grocery store may also compete by locating in a mixed commercial-residential area close to, and convenient for, its customers. Organic foods are also becoming a more popular niche market for smaller stores.

Grocery stores operate in many different styles ranging from rural family-owned operations, such as [[IGA (supermarkets)|IGAs]], to boutique chains, such as [[Whole Foods Market]] and [[Trader Joe's]], to larger supermarket chain stores such as [[Walmart]] and [[Kroger]] Marketplace. In some places, [[food cooperative]]s, or "co-op" markets, owned by their own shoppers, have been popular. However, there has recently been a trend towards larger stores serving larger geographic areas. Very large "all-in-one" [[hypermarket]]s such as [[Walmart]], [[Target Corporation|Target]], and [[Meijer]] have recently forced consolidation of the grocery businesses in some areas, and the entry of [[variety store]]s such as [[Dollar General]] into rural areas has undercut many traditional grocery stores. The global buying power of such very efficient companies has put an increased financial burden on traditional local grocery stores as well as the national [[supermarket]] chains, and many have been caught up in the [[retail apocalypse]] of the 2010s.

[[File:Old grocery shop (38797097655).jpg|thumb|Grocery store in Porto, Portugal]]
Many European cities are so dense in population and buildings that large supermarkets, in the American sense, cannot replace the neighbourhood grocer's shop. However, "Metro" shops have been appearing in town and city centres in many countries, leading to the decline of independent smaller shops. Large out-of-town [[supermarket]]s and [[hypermarket]]s, such as [[Tesco]] and [[Sainsbury's]] in the [[United Kingdom]], have been steadily weakening trade from smaller shops. Many grocery chains like [[Spar (retailer)|Spar]] or [[Mace (retailer)|Mace]] are taking over the regular family business model.

===The future===

According to Deloitte Insights,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/retail-distribution/future-of-grocery-retail.html|title=The future of grocery retail|website=www.deloitte.com}}Deloitte</ref> exponentially more powerful technology is one of the major forces reshaping the industry. The future of grocery stores is likely to be shaped by continued technological innovation, with trends like automated checkouts, AI-driven inventory management, and even drone deliveries. Sustainability will also be a key focus, with stores adopting more eco-friendly practices and products.

==Types==
Grocery stores can be small or large physical stores or electronic (online) stores.

The US FMI food industry association, drawing on research by Willard Bishop, defines the following formats (store types) that sell groceries:<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.fmi.org/our-research/supermarket-facts|title=FMI &#124; Supermarket Facts|website=www.fmi.org}}</ref>
{|class="wikitable"
!Store type
!Definition as per the US FMI Food Industry Association/Bishop
|-
|colspan="2"|'''Traditional grocery'''
|-
|Traditional [[supermarket]]
|Stores offering a full line of groceries, meat, and produce with at least US$2 million USD in annual sales and up to 15% of their sales in general merchandise (GM) and health & beauty care (HBC). These stores typically carry anywhere from 15,000 to 60,000 SKUs (depending on the size of the store) and may offer a service deli, a service bakery, and/or a pharmacy e.g., [[Albertsons]], [[Safeway]], [[Kroger]], and [[Prime Supermarket]].
|-
|Fresh format
|Different from traditional supermarkets and traditional natural food stores, fresh stores emphasize perishables and offer center-store assortments that differ from those of traditional retailers—especially in the areas of ethnic, natural, and organic, e.g., [[Whole Foods Market|Whole Foods]], [[The Fresh Market]], and some independents.
|-
|Limited-assortment store
|A low-priced grocery store that offers a limited assortment of center-store and perishable items (fewer than 2,000), e.g., [[Aldi]], [[Lidl]], [[Trader Joe's]], and [[Save-A-Lot]].
|-
|[[Warehouse store|Super warehouse]]
|A high-volume hybrid of a large traditional supermarket and a [[warehouse store]]. Super warehouse stores typically offer a full range of service departments, quality perishables, and reduced prices, e.g., [[Cub Foods]], [[Food 4 Less]], and [[Smart & Final]].
|-
|Other (Small Grocery)
|The small corner grocery store that carries a limited selection of staples and other convenience goods. These stores generate approximately $1 million in business annually.
|-
|colspan="2"|'''Non-traditional grocery'''

|-
|[[Warehouse club|Wholesale club]]
|A membership retail/wholesale hybrid with a varied selection and limited variety of products presented in a warehouse-type environment. These approximately 120,000 square-foot stores have 60% to 70% GM/HBC and a grocery line dedicated to large sizes and bulk sales. Memberships include both business accounts and consumer groups, e.g., [[Sam's Club]], [[Costco]], and [[BJ's Wholesale Club|BJ's]].
|-
|[[Big-box store|Supercenter]]
|A hybrid of a large traditional supermarket and a mass merchandiser. Supercenters offer a wide variety of food, as well as non-food merchandise. These stores average more than 170,000 square feet and typically devote as much as 40% of the space to grocery items, e.g., [[Walmart]] Supercenter, Super [[Target Corporation|Target]], [[Meijer]], and [[Kroger]] Marketplace.
|-
|[[Variety store|Dollar store]]
|A small store format that traditionally sold staples and knickknacks, but now sales of food and consumable items at aggressive price points that account for at least 20%, and up to 66%, of their volume, e.g., [[Dollar General]], [[Dollar Tree]], [[Action (store)|Action]], [[Pep&Co]], [[Poundland]], and [[Family Dollar]].
|-
|[[Pharmacy (shop)|Drug store]]
|A prescription-based drug store that generates 20% or more of its total sales from consumables, general merchandise, and seasonal items. This channel includes major chain drug stores such as [[Walgreens]], [[dm-drogerie markt|DM]], [[A.S. Watson Group|AS Watson]], and [[CVS Pharmacy|CVS]].
|-
|[[Discount store|Mass merchandiser]]
|A large store selling primarily hardlines, clothing, electronics, and sporting goods but also carries grocery and non-edible grocery items. This channel includes traditional [[Walmart]], [[Kmart]], and [[Target Corporation|Target]].
|-
|Military ([[Defense Commissary Agency|commissaries]])
|A format that looks like a conventional grocery store carrying groceries and consumables but is restricted to use by active or retired military personnel. Civilians may not shop at these stores (referred to as commissaries).
|-
|[[E-commerce]] (food and consumables)
|Food and consumable products ordered using the internet via any devices, regardless of the method of payment or fulfillment.  This channel includes [[Amazon (company)|Amazon]] and [[Peapod]] as well as the E-Commerce business generated by traditional brick & mortar retailers, e.g., Coborns (Coborns Delivers) and [[ShopRite (United States)|ShopRite]] (ShopRite Order, Pickup, Deliver and ShopRite Delivers). The other non-traditional retail segments above include their E-Commerce business.
|}

===Small format===
====Neighborhood grocery====
[[File:Ashrafiya, Amman, Jordan.jpg|thumb|Corner stores in [[Amman]], Jordan]]
In developing countries, often a significant portion of grocery shopping is done at so-called "mom-and-pop" (i.e., family-run), small grocery stores. 90% of the 810-billion-dollar Indian food and grocery market sales are at the 12 million small grocery stores, called ''kirana''.<ref name="india">{{cite web|title=Cucumbers and gherkins|url=http://apeda.gov.in/apedawebsite/SubHead_Products/Cucumber_and_Gherkins.htm|publisher=Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority, Government of India|access-date=13 November 2017|date=2015}}</ref> Similarly, in Mexico, ''tiendas de la esquina'' (literally "corner stores") are still common places for people to buy groceries and sundries, even though they become less and less of the market over time.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mexiconewsdaily.com/news/future-not-bright-for-the-mom-and-pop-stores/|title=Future is not bright for mom and pop corner grocery stores|date=December 21, 2017}}</ref>

====Convenience store====
[[File:R-kioski Vimpeli 2016.jpg|thumb|Convenience store in [[Vimpeli]], [[Finland]]]]
A [[convenience store|convenience shop]] is a small store that stocks a range of everyday items such as groceries, snack foods, candy, toiletries, soft drinks, tobacco products, and newspapers. They differ from [[general store]]s and village shops in that they are not in a rural location and are used as a convenient supplement to larger shops.

Although larger, newer convenience stores may have quite a broad range of items, the selection is still limited compared to supermarkets, and, in many stores, only 1 or 2 choices are available. Convenience stores usually charge significantly higher prices than ordinary grocery stores or [[supermarket]]s, which they make up for with convenience by serving more locations and having shorter cashier lines.<ref>''Understanding Food: Principles and Preparation'', Amy Brown, {{ISBN|978-0538734981}}, 2013</ref> Many convenience stores offer food ready to eat, such as breakfast sandwiches and other breakfast food.

====Delicatessen====
A [[delicatessen]] store is a type of food store where fine foods are sold. In this sense, the name is often abbreviated to ''deli''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wordcentral.com/cgi-bin/student?delicatessen |title=Definition of delicatessen - Merriam-Webster's Student Dictionary |publisher=Wordcentral.com |date=2012-09-20 |access-date=2015-03-06}}</ref> The term ''delicatessen'' means "[[delicacies]]" or "fine foods". In [[English language|English]], "delicatessen" originally meant only this specially prepared food.
<gallery>
File:La-pineda.jpg|[[Delicatessen]] foods
Lozupone katz2.png|Delicatessen in New York City, New York
Rome Italian deli.jpg|Delicatessen in a shop in Rome, Italy
</gallery>

====Greengrocer====
A [[greengrocer]] is a [[retail]] trader in [[fruit]] and [[vegetable]]s; that is, in groceries that are mostly green in color.<ref name="IntrotoPoetry">{{cite book|last=Driscoll|first=Michael|author2=Meredith Hamiltion |author3=Marie Coons |title=A Child's Introduction to Poetry|publisher=Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers|location=New York|date=May 2003|page=12|isbn=1-57912-282-5|url=http://search.barnesandnoble.com/A-Childs-Introduction-to-Poetry/Michael-Driscoll/e/9781579122829}}</ref> Greengrocer is primarily a [[United Kingdom|British]] and [[Australia]]n term, and greengrocers' shops were once common in cities, towns and villages.

<gallery>
File:Miscelanea en Xalatlaco.jpg|A miscelanea, a type of family-run [[convenience store]] in Mexico
File:Da-Lat-market.jpg|A [[green grocer]] in Vietnam
File:Tampere TampereenKauppahalli 01.jpg|A green grocers in the [[Tampere Market Hall]]
</gallery>

==== Ethnic market ====
Some grocers specialize in the foods of certain countries or regions, such as [[Hispanic]]/[[Latin American culture|Latin American]],<ref name=abasto>{{cite web | url=https://abasto.com/en/news/great-success-ethnic-supermarkets/ | title=The Great Success of Ethnic Supermarkets in the United States | date=15 May 2017 }}</ref> [[Chinese culture|Chinese]], [[Italian culture|Italian]], [[Middle East]]ern, [[Indian food|Indian]], [[Russian food|Russian]], or [[Polish culture|Polish]]. These stores are known in the US as ''ethnic markets'',<ref name="Carter">{{cite book |last=Carter |first=F |title=Exploring Honolulu's Chinatown |publisher=Bess Press, Honolulu |year=1987}}</ref> ''ethnic food markets, ethnic grocers'', or ''ethnic grocery stores''.

Types include [[Asian supermarket]]s outside of Asia, or a [[Bodega (store)|bodega]] or Hispanic supermarkets in the United States or a [[Toko (shop)|toko]] in the Netherlands.

A kosher supermarket or other establishment guided by religious food traditions would also typically have an association with certain ethnic cuisines, though not exclusively.

IBISWorld estimates US ethnic grocery stores will make up ca. $51 billion<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.ibisworld.com/industry-statistics/market-size/ethnic-supermarkets-united-states/ | title=IBISWorld - Industry Market Research, Reports, and Statistics }}</ref> in sales, 6% of the total ca. $819 billion in 2023 US supermarket sales.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.ibisworld.com/industry-statistics/market-size/supermarkets-grocery-stores-united-states/ | title=IBISWorld - Industry Market Research, Reports, and Statistics }}</ref> The largest such chains in 2016 were Hispanic supermarkets Superior Grocers, with an estimated $ 1.6 billion in sales and El Súper-Bodega Latina, a division of Mexico's [[Chedraui]] Group, with estimated sales of $1.2 billion.

====Health food store====
A [[health food store]] is a type of grocery store that primarily sells [[health food]]s, [[organic food]]s, local [[produce]], and often [[nutritional supplement]]s. Health food stores typically offer a wider or more specialized selection of foods than conventional grocery stores for their customers, such as people with special dietary needs.

Health food stores became much more common in the 1960s in connection to the newly emerging [[ecology movement]] and [[counterculture]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Jenkins |first=Nancy |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/04/04/garden/health-food-and-the-change-in-eating-habits.html |title=Health Food And The Change In Eating Habits |work=The New York Times |date=1984-04-04 |access-date=2015-03-06}}</ref>

====Milk bar====
[[File:Mosgiel Knox's Milk Bar.JPG|thumb|A [[milk bar]] in [[Mosgiel]], [[New Zealand]]]]
In [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]], a [[milk bar]] is a [[suburban]] local [[general store]] or café. Similar terms include [[tuck shop]]s, [[delicatessen]]s or "delis", and [[corner shop]]s. The first business using the name "milk bar" was started in India in 1930. By the late 1940s, milk bars had evolved to include not only groceries, but also became places where young people could buy ready-made food and [[non-alcoholic drink]]s and could socialise.

===Large format===

====Supermarket====

A [[supermarket]], a large form of the traditional grocery store, is a [[self-service]] [[Retail#Types of retail outlets|shop]] offering a wide variety of [[food]] and household products organized into aisles. The supermarket typically comprises [[meat]], fresh [[produce]], [[dairy]], and baked goods aisles, along with shelf space reserved for canned and packaged goods as well as for various non-food items such as [[kitchenware]], household cleaners, pharmacy products and [[pet]] supplies.

Other services offered at some supermarkets may include those of [[bank]]s, [[Coffeehouses|cafés]], [[Day care|childcare centres/creches]], [[Photographic processing|photo processing]], [[video rental]]s, [[pharmacy (shop)|pharmacies]] and/or [[petrol station]]s.

<gallery>
Supermarkt.jpg|The [[produce]] section in a [[supermarket]]
Trader Joe's at the Hampshire Mall.JPG|Store in [[Hadley, Massachusetts]]
Põhja Rimi.JPG|[[Rimi Baltic|Supermarket]] in [[Tallinn]], [[Estonia]]
</gallery>

====Hypermarket====
{{See also|List of hypermarkets}}
A [[hypermarket]] is a [[big-box store|superstore]] combining a [[supermarket]] and a [[department store]]. The result is an expansive [[retailing|retail]] facility carrying a wide range of products under one roof, including a full groceries line and [[product (business)|general merchandise]]. Another category of stores sometimes included in the hypermarket category is the membership-based [[wholesale]] [[warehouse club]]s that are popular in [[North America]].
<gallery>
Fredmeyer.jpg|[[Packaged food]] aisles in a [[Fred Meyer]], a hypermarket chain in the [[Pacific Northwest]]
Prisma Helsingin Malmilla.jpg|The entrance of the [[S Group|hypermarket]] in [[Malmi, Helsinki|Malmi]], [[Helsinki]], [[Finland]]
</gallery>

===Electronic===
[[File:FreshDirect truck with Common Pantry Seal.jpg|thumb|Online grocer delivery truck]] An [[online grocer]] is a recent phenomenon that has developed as a type of [[e-commerce]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Xie|first=Kang|title=A Strategic Analysis of Online Grocery and Its Future Outlook|date=2004|publisher=Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lPFCOAAACAAJ}}</ref> Several online grocery stores exist, one of the oldest available in the US being [[Peapod]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Tam|first=Donna|title=Peapod who? Online grocer shows Amazon, Walmart how it's done|url=http://www.cnet.com/news/peapod-who-online-grocer-shows-amazon-walmart-how-its-done/|website=CNET|access-date=28 April 2014}}</ref> Nowadays, many online grocery stores such as Netgrocer, MyBrands, Efooddepot and many more that all aim to provide quality food products with timely delivery and convenience of ordering online.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.efooddepot.com |title=Online Grocery Shopping With Free Shipping |publisher=EFoodDepot.com |access-date=2015-03-06}}</ref>  Other large retailers in the US have started similar models, including [[AmazonFresh]] and [[Amazon Prime Pantry|Prime Pantry]], both run by [[Amazon.com]], [[Walmart]]'s To-Go service, and smaller companies like Yummy.com and RelayFoods.<ref>{{cite web|title=Online grocery growth tests U.S. retail agility|url=http://www.thecitywire.com/node/31404|publisher=The City Wire|access-date=28 April 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140627045356/http://www.thecitywire.com/node/31404|archive-date=2014-06-27|url-status=dead}}</ref> In the US, sales from online grocers in 2013 were $15 billion.<ref>{{cite web|last=Cassel|first=Ian|title=The Food Tech Revolution|date=14 April 2014 |url=http://seekingalpha.com/article/2141123-the-food-tech-revolution|publisher=Seeking Alpha|access-date=28 April 2014}}</ref> Online grocery stores are more popular in Europe, where sales from 2012 in Britain alone were €7.1 billion, and in certain markets are projected to double from 2012 to 2016.<ref>{{cite news|last=Thomasson|first=Emma|title=Online grocery sales to double in key European markets by 2016: IGD|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/net-us-retail-online-grocery-idUSBRE99M1IO20131023|work=Reuters|date=23 October 2013|access-date=28 April 2014}}</ref>
{{Clear}}

==Regional variations==
{{Further|List of supermarket chains}}
{{generalize|section|date=April 2014|reason=can't have this much detail for every brand in the world (would be too long), so this needs to be more general information on brand and chains}}

===Europe===
Larger grocer complexes that include other facilities, such as [[petrol station]]s, are especially common in the [[United Kingdom]], where major chains such as [[Sainsbury's]] and [[Tesco]] have many locations operating under this format. Traditional shops throughout [[Europe]] have been preserved because of their history and their classic appearance. They are sometimes still found in rural areas, although they are rapidly disappearing.

===South America===
Grocery stores in [[South America]] have been growing fast since the early 1980s. A large percentage of food sales and other articles take place in grocery stores today. Some examples are the [[Chile]]an chains [[Cencosud]] (Jumbo and Santa Isabel covering [[Chile]], [[Argentina]], [[Brazil]] and [[Peru]]), [[Walmart Chile|Walmart]] ([[Líder|Lider]] and [[Ekono]]) as well as [[Falabella (retail store)|Falabella]] ([[Tottus]] in Chile and Peru and Supermercados San Francisco in Chile). These three chains are subsidiaries of large retail companies which also have other kinds of business units, such as department stores and home improvement outlets. All three also operate their own credit cards, which are a key driver for sales, and they also sell insurance and operate travel agencies. These companies also run some malls in countries such as Argentina, Chile, Peru and Colombia.

Two other chains started in 2008: [[Unimarc]], which bought several small local chains and has over 20% of the grocery segment in Chile; and Southern Cross, a Chilean Investment Fund that has around 8.6% of the supermarket segment, mainly oriented to the southern areas of the country. In [[Puerto Rico]], popular grocery stores include [[Pueblo Supermarkets]] and [[Amigo Supermarkets|Amigo]].

===North America===
In some countries such as the United States, grocery stores descended from [[trading post]]s, which sold not only food but clothing, furniture, household items, tools, and other miscellaneous merchandise. These trading posts evolved into larger retail businesses known as [[general store]]s. These facilities generally dealt only in "dry" goods such as [[baking soda]], canned foods, dry beans, and flour. Consumers obtained perishable foods from specialty markets, such as fresh meat or sausages from a [[butcher]] and milk from a local [[dairy]], while eggs and vegetables were either produced by families themselves, bartered for with neighbors, or purchased at a [[farmers' market]] or a local [[greengrocer]].{{citation needed|date=August 2017}}

In the US, there are many larger [[chain store]]s, but there are also many small chains and independent grocery stores.  About 11% of groceries are sold by a grocery store that is either independent or in a chain of just one, two, or three stores, making the independent stores, taken collectively, bigger than the biggest chains.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://longreads.com/2019/04/23/the-man-whos-going-to-save-your-grocery-store/|title=The Man Who's Going to Save Your Neighborhood Grocery Store|last=Fassler|first=Joe|date=2019-04-23|website=Longreads|language=en|access-date=2019-05-01}}</ref>

Most food in the US is bought at traditional [[Brick and mortar|brick-and-mortar]] grocery stores.<ref name=":0" />  As of 2019, about 3% of food was bought from an online retailer such as Amazon.com.<ref name=":0" />

The economic trends affecting grocery stores include:
* In every decade since the 1960s, Americans have spent an increasing share of their money on eating at restaurants, which reduces their need to buy groceries.<ref name=":0" />
* Groceries are sold by many other stores, such as [[convenience store]]s, [[drug stores]], and [[dollar stores]].<ref name=":0" />  The result of [[retail channel blurring]] is that even when people are buying groceries, only about half of them are buying groceries from a grocery store.<ref name=":0" />
* Online sales of food are small but increasing.  People who buy groceries from an internet retailer or a [[meal kit]] company have less need to buy groceries from a grocery store.<ref name=":0" />
* People want to buy foods that reflect local and regional specialties.  Sales of national brands, such as [[Nabisco]] cookies and crackers, have declined, and the companies have responded by changing their marketing approach.  The reduction in advertising has resulted in fewer sales at the grocery store.<ref name=":0" />

==Food marketing==
[[File:Grocery Store display-1967-14.jpg|thumb|Grocery store display in 1967]] [[Food marketing]] brings together the producer and the consumer. It is the chain of activities that brings food from "farm gate to plate".<ref>Wansink, ''[[Marketing Nutrition]]'', 501–3.</ref> The marketing of even a single food product can be a complicated process involving many producers and companies. For example, 56 companies are involved in making one can of chicken noodle soup.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Pomeranz | first1 = J. L. | last2 = Adler | first2 = S. | year = 2015 | title = Defining Commercial Speech in the Context of Food Marketing | journal = Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics | volume = 43 | pages = 40–43 | doi = 10.1111/jlme.12213 | pmid = 25846162 | s2cid = 41521942 }}</ref> These businesses include not only chicken and vegetable processors, but also the companies that transport the ingredients and those who print labels and manufacture cans.<ref>Smith, 501–3.</ref> The food marketing system is the largest direct and indirect non-government employer in the United States.

In the pre-modern era, the sale of surplus food took place once a week when farmers took their wares on market day into the local village marketplace. Here food was sold to [[grocer]]s for sale in their local shops for purchase by local consumers.<ref name="silhnc">Mead, 11–19.</ref><ref name=Jango>Jango-Cohen</ref> With the onset of industrialization and the development of the food processing industry, a wider range of food could be sold and distributed in distant locations. Typically, early grocery shops would be counter-based where purchasers told the shop-keeper what they wanted and the shop-keeper would get it for them.<ref name="silhnc"/><ref>Benson</ref>

In the 20th century, [[supermarket]]s were born. Supermarkets brought with them a [[self service]] approach to shopping using [[shopping cart]]s, and were able to offer quality food at lower cost through [[economies of scale]] and reduced staffing costs. In the latter part of the 20th century, this has been further revolutionized by the development of vast warehouse-sized, out-of-town supermarkets, selling a wide range of food from around the world.<ref>Humphery</ref>

Unlike food processors, food retailing is a two-tier market in which a small number of very large [[Corporation|companies]] control a large proportion of supermarkets. The supermarket giants wield great purchasing power over farmers and processors, and strong influence over consumers. Less than 10% of [[consumer spending]] on food goes to farmers, with larger percentages going to [[advertising]], transportation, and intermediate corporations.<ref>Magdoff, Fred (Ed.) "[T]he farmer's share of the food dollar (after paying for input costs) has steadily declined from about 40 percent in 1910 to less than 10 percent in 1990."</ref>

===Prices===
{{Main|Food prices|Food vs. fuel}}
It was reported on March 24, 2008, that consumers worldwide faced rising food prices.<ref name="cnn24march2008">"Food prices rising across the world", CNN. 24 March 2008</ref> Reasons for this development include changes in the weather and dramatic changes in the [[global economy]] including higher [[oil price]]s, lower food reserves, and growing consumer demand in [[China]] and [[India]].<ref name="cnn24march2008"/>

The US Labor Department has calculated that food purchased at home and in restaurants is 13% of household purchases, behind 32% for housing and 18% for transportation. The average US family spent $280 per month or $3,305 per year at grocery stores in 2004. The newsletter Dollar Stretcher survey estimated $149 a month for a single person, $257 for a couple and $396 for a family of four.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.stretcher.com/stories/990705a.cfm |title=Grocery Spending Survey |publisher=Stretcher.com |date=2006-06-20 |access-date=2014-04-22 |archive-date=25 September 2002 |archive-url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20020925042819/http%3A//www.stretcher.com/stories/990705a.cfm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Food waste==
{{main|Food waste}}
[[File:Food waste in a blue waste container.jpg|thumb|Food waste in container]]As of 2011, 1.3 billion tons of food, about one third of the global food production, are lost or wasted annually. The [[USDA]] estimates that 27% of food is lost annually.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ers.usda.gov/Publications/FoodReview/Jan1997/Jan97a.pdf |title=Estimating and Addressing America's Food Losses |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070317040408/http://www.ers.usda.gov/Publications/FoodReview/Jan1997/Jan97a.pdf|archivedate=March 17, 2007}}</ref> In [[developing country|developing]] and [[developed country|developed countries]] which operate either [[Commercial agriculture|commercial]] or [[industrial agriculture]], food waste can occur at most stages of the [[food industry]] and in significant amounts.<ref name="kantor3">Kantor, p. 3.</ref>

[[Food packaging|Packaging]] protects food from damage during its transportation from farms and factories via warehouses to retailing, as well as preserving its freshness upon arrival.<ref name="defrapack" /> Although it avoids considerable food waste,<ref name="defrapack">{{cite web|title=Making the most of packaging, A strategy for a low-carbon economy |url=http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/producer/packaging/documents/excec-summary-pack-strategy.pdf |publisher=[[Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs|Defra]] |year=2009 |access-date=2009-09-13 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100108015433/http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/producer/packaging/documents/excec-summary-pack-strategy.pdf |archive-date=2010-01-08 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book
|last = Robertson
|first = Gordon L.
|title = Food packaging: principles and practice
|publisher = CRC Press
|year = 2006
|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=NFRR6GayR74C&pg=PA1
|access-date = 2009-09-27
|isbn = 978-0-8493-3775-8}}</ref> packaging can compromise efforts to reduce food waste in other ways, such as by contaminating waste that could be used for animal feedstocks.<ref>{{cite web|title=Review of Food Waste Depackaging Equipment |url=http://www.organics-recycling.org.uk/uploads/article1762/Wrap%20Report%20on%20Food%20Waste%20Depackaging.pdf |publisher=[[Waste and Resources Action Programme]] (WRAP) |year=2009 |access-date=2009-09-27 }}</ref>

Retail stores can throw away large quantities of food. Usually, this consists of items that have reached either their [[Shelf life|best before, sell-by or use-by dates.]] Food that passed the best before, and sell-by date, and even some food that passed the use-by date is still edible at the time of disposal, but stores have widely varying policies to handle the excess food. Some stores put effort into preventing access to poor or homeless people while others work with charitable organizations to distribute food.

Retailers also contribute to waste as a result of their contractual arrangements with suppliers. Failure to supply agreed quantities renders farmers or processors liable to have their contracts cancelled. As a consequence, they plan to produce more than actually required to meet the contract, to have a margin of error. Surplus production is often simply disposed of.<ref>*{{Cite book | title = Waste: Uncovering the Global Food Scandal: The True Cost of What the Global Food Industry Throws Away | first = Tristram | last = Stuart | publisher = Penguin | year = 2009 | isbn = 978-0-14-103634-2}}</ref> Some grocery stores donate leftover food (for example, [[Delicatessen|deli foods]] and bread past their expiration date) to [[homeless shelters]] or charity kitchens.<ref name="Werner">{{cite book| title = Society on the Run: A European View of Life in America| edition = Hardcover| last = Peters| first = Werner| year = 1996| publisher = M.E. Sharpe | isbn = 1-56324-586-8| page = 12}}</ref>

[[File:Protest against food waste, Berlin, Germany.jpg|thumb|Protest against food waste, Berlin, Germany]]The European Union claimed 2014 to be "Year Against Food Waste".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2014/12/09/369613561/in-europe-ugly-sells-in-the-produce-aisle|title=In Europe, Ugly Sells In The Produce Aisle|website=NPR.org|date=9 December 2014|language=en|access-date=2019-10-02|last1=Godoy|first1=Maria}}</ref> The contracts that most retailers had signed required that food would be of a certain quality. With this recent socio-political change, food such as non-round tomatoes and apples with blemishes had a new market. [[Intermarché|Intermarche]], France's third-largest supermarket launched its "inglorious fruits and vegetables" campaign in order to reduce waste. This, fruits and vegetables, waste reduction strategy has shown great promise towards this EU proposed campaign. These products are sold at a reduced price compared to the perfectionist campaign showing a 24% increase in sales. Fruta Feia a Portuguese retailer ran a similar business strategy with comparable success.

A 2021 analysis by the United Nations Environment Programme found that food waste was a challenge in all countries and economic levels, excluding food lost during production.<ref name=":11" /> This study estimated global food waste at 931 million tonnes (around 121 kg per person) across three sectors: households (61%), food service (26%), and retail (13%).<ref name=":11">{{Cite report|date=2021-03-04|title=UNEP Food Waste Index Report 2021 |url=http://www.unep.org/resources/report/unep-food-waste-index-report-2021|access-date=2022-02-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220201175514/https://www.unep.org/resources/report/unep-food-waste-index-report-2021|archive-date=2022-02-01|url-status=live|publisher=United Nations Environment Programme|isbn=978-92-807-3851-3}}</ref>

Food waste contributes significantly to agriculture's impact on climate change, responsible for 3.3 billion tons of CO<sub>2</sub>e emissions annually,<ref name=":15">{{Cite web|title=FAO - News Article: Food wastage: Key facts and figures|url=http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/196402/icode/|access-date=2021-06-07|website=www.fao.org|archive-date=2021-06-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210607154047/http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/196402/icode/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2013-09-11 |title=A third of food is wasted, making it third-biggest carbon emitter, U.N. says |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-food-wastage-idUKBRE98A0E920130911 |url-status=live |access-date=2021-06-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210607154048/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-food-wastage-idUKBRE98A0E920130911 |archive-date=2021-06-07}}</ref> along with other environmental concerns like land use, water consumption, and biodiversity loss. Preventing food waste is a top priority, followed by surplus food reuse through methods like donations. Strategies then include animal feed, nutrient recycling, and energy recovery, with landfill being the least preferred due to methane emissions.<ref>{{Cite web |last=US EPA |first=OLEM |date=2015-08-12 |title=Food Recovery Hierarchy |url=https://www.epa.gov/sustainable-management-food/food-recovery-hierarchy |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190523060937/https://www.epa.gov/sustainable-management-food/food-recovery-hierarchy |archive-date=2019-05-23 |access-date=2022-05-15 |website=www.epa.gov}}</ref>

The UN's Sustainable Development Goal Target 12.3 aims to cut global per capita food waste by 50% at retail, consumer levels, and throughout production and supply chains, including post-harvest losses, by [[2030]].<ref name=":17">United Nations (2017) Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 6 July 2017, [[:File:A RES 71 313 E.pdf|Work of the Statistical Commission pertaining to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development]] ([https://undocs.org/A/RES/71/313 A/RES/71/313] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023121826/https://undocs.org/A/RES/71/313 |date=2020-10-23  }})</ref> [[Climate change mitigation]] efforts emphasize reducing food waste,<ref name=":4">{{Cite web|date=2020-02-12|title=Reduced Food Waste|url=https://drawdown.org/solutions/reduced-food-waste/technical-summary|access-date=2020-09-19|website=Project Drawdown|archive-date=2020-09-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200924152831/https://www.drawdown.org/solutions/reduced-food-waste/technical-summary|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="guardian">{{cite web |author=Juliette Jowit |date=28 October 2007 |title=Call to use leftovers and cut food waste |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2007/oct/28/food.foodanddrink |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117133103/http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2007/oct/28/food.foodanddrink |archive-date=2015-11-17 |access-date=2015-09-22 |work=The Guardian}}</ref> as demonstrated by the 2022 UN Biodiversity Conference's agreement among nations to achieve a 50% reduction in food waste by [[2030]].<ref name="CBD">{{cite web |title=COP15: NATIONS ADOPT FOUR GOALS, 23 TARGETS FOR 2030 IN LANDMARK UN BIODIVERSITY AGREEMENT |url=https://www.cbd.int/article/cop15-cbd-press-release-final-19dec2022 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221220055316/https://www.cbd.int/article/cop15-cbd-press-release-final-19dec2022 |archive-date=2022-12-20 |access-date=9 January 2023 |website=Convention on Biological Diversity |publisher=United Nations}}</ref><ref name="independent">{{cite web |title=Britain's colossal food waste is stoking climate change |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/britains-colossal-food-waste-is-stoking-climate-change-398664.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025215750/http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/britains-colossal-food-waste-is-stoking-climate-change-398664.html |archive-date=2012-10-25 |access-date=2015-09-22 |work=The Independent}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Companies|Food|Supermarkets}}
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* [[Big-box store]]
* [[Bulk foods]]
* [[Food cooperative]]
* [[General store]]
* [[List of grocers]]
* [[List of food cooperatives]]
* [[List of hypermarkets]]
* [[List of supermarket chains]]
* [[List of convenience stores]]
* [[List of superstores]]
* [[Self-service]]
* [[Vegetable box scheme]]
* [[Greengrocer]]
{{div col end}}

==Notes==
<references group="note" />

==References==
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==Further reading==
* Deutsch,  Tracey. ''Building a Housewife's Paradise: Gender, Politics, and American Grocery Stores in the Twentieth Century'' (2010)
* {{cite book|last=Mayo|first=James M.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3OKRAAAAIAAJ |title=The American grocery store: the business evolution of an architectural space |publisher=Greenwood Press |date=1993 |isbn=0313265208}}
* Nebraska Jewish Historical Society. ''Mom and Pop Grocery Stores'' (2011)
* {{cite journal|last=Raijas|first=Anu|title=The consumer benefits and problems in the electronic grocery store|journal=Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services|date=March 2002|volume=9|issue=2|pages=107–113|doi=10.1016/S0969-6989(01)00024-8|issn=0969-6989}}
* Spellman, Susan V. ''Cornering the market: Independent grocers and innovation in American small business, 1860–1940'' (Oxford University press, 2015) [http://gradworks.umi.com/33/53/3353011.html online dissertation version 2009]

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline|Grocery stores}}
* {{Wiktionary-inline|grocery|grocer|grocery|purveyor}}
{{Retail}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Grocery store buildings|*]]
[[Category:Food retailers]]
[[Category:Retailers by type of merchandise sold]]
[[Category:Supermarkets]]
[[Category:Sales occupations]]