Albert Heijn is seeing a strong increase in demand for online groceries and has therefore opened a second mechanised Home Shop Center (HSC) in Zwolle. This brings the tally to nine HSCs in total and significantly increases the capacity for online ordering in the northeast of the Netherlands. The supermarket chain is also investing heavily in sustainable delivery and smart energy solutions.
''As a leader in the online grocery market, we are constantly looking at how we can work smarter and more efficiently by using the latest technologies to meet growing demand. It is therefore great that with our new mechanised Home Shop Center in Zwolle, we can provide groceries to even more customers in the north-east of the Netherlands in a sustainable way. And of course our new colleagues play a crucial role in providing groceries for our customers," said Marit van Egmond, CEO at Albert Heijn.
New mechanised HSC
The number of online orders at Albert Heijn has tripled in five years. To enable the growth of online orders, Albert Heijn - following the HSC in Barendrecht - is opening a mechanised HSC in Zwolle. This new HSC will allow as many as 55,000 extra orders to be processed per week. The HSC in Zwolle is a completely gas-free building with various sustainable energy solutions, such as solar panels on the roof, an energy-efficient cold store, energy-efficient LED lighting and a heat pump for the climate system in the offices.
Sustainable delivery
Based on the mission 'Together making better food accessible. For everyone', Albert Heijn also wants to make online grocery delivery as sustainable as possible. Albert Heijn delivers the groceries as much as possible with electric delivery vans. In addition, 55% of customers now choose the Neighbourhood Route, a sustainable initiative in which delivery moments are linked. As a result, delivery staff drive shorter routes. Since its national introduction last November, the Buurtroute has saved 400,000 kilometres together with customers.
Albert Heijn also announced it will start using new gel packs to completely stop using dry ice before the end of the year. In addition, Albert Heijn is starting a pilot for delivery of chilled and frozen food without plastic bags that will save over 600,000 kg of plastic per year.
