According to recently published figures for the UK, it now accounts for 13% of all transactions and online grocery sales are set to double in key European markets by 2016.
This shift in consumer shopping behaviour has inevitably had an impact on the role and purpose of packaging as a tool to persuade, protect and inform.
The fundamental role of packaging is being permanently altered.
The requirement to shout on pack messages in store like 'Buy me!', '10% off!', 'Family Pack!' or cover the pack in garish price marks are not now, in theory, required in an at-home shopping scenario where all manner of non-packaging specific marketing tools can be used to persuade purchase.
The design on the pack purchased online could have different messaging to that bought in store. The first time consumers will interact with the packaging in this scenario will be a post purchase 'second moment of truth' with the sales conversion having already taken place perhaps days earlier.
Despite the growth, presently, just about all consumer facing brands are packaged exactly the same whether bought in store or online. It is, of course, the same stock that the retailer is drawing upon.
In the traditional bricks and mortar shopping environment, the role of packaging at the point of sale is to entice the shopper and persuade them to act in the second or two in takes to make a buying decision.
Packaging that attracts, looks different, is merchandised optimally and stands out at the point of sale has a fighting chance of winning the attention of the busy shopper.
Packaging's role is fundamentally different when items are delivered to the consumer's door. It no longer needs to tease, entice and inform shoppers as part of the pre-purchase decision making process.
That battleground is won and lost on a computer, smartphone or tablet screen. The product's previous history and reputation is far more important in this situation.
In terms of special edition packs, when the promotional 'sell' is online, packaging takes a backseat. It is no longer necessary to emblazon seductive 'buy me' messaging on pack when the interaction is done on a computer screen.
Brands have the opportunity to be more aesthetically pleasing in the hand AND the opportunity to declutter a busy pack with more branded and more post-purchase supportive messaging.
The in-store packaging also needs to have transportation functionality to ensure the product can be safely transferred by the shopper from retail store to home. But the game changes beyond recognition in the online world where products need to travel just metres to the fridge so is there the need for expensive and highly engineered handles for example?
There are clearly massive hurdles in terms of the practical implications of 'dual packaging'.
It will be really interesting to see if any major brand owners bite the bullet and change their packaging to meet the needs of consumers in this exciting new world.
Those brands and online retailers that recognise this could create a significant competitive advantage in the marketplace.
