Aldi Switzerland has announced it is closing "Aldi Now," its e-commerce home delivery service that has operated in major Swiss cities for the last four years.
Why did this happen? While official reasons weren't fully disclosed, high labor costs in Switzerland are widely cited as the main factor making the economics of the business unviable. In this video, we break down why home delivery is so challenging for grocery discounters. Is this an outlier case, or a reality check for the online grocery hype?
Aldi’s entire retail model is meticulously engineered to strip out operational costs. However, adding home delivery reintroduces the least efficient activities into the mix. Can a discount retailer ever offer e-commerce without undermining the exact cost advantages that bring customers to the store? Let's discuss.
