Need worry-free meat? Then check out this online supermarket!

The latest entrant to the fray of online grocers is grandmarket, but they stand out in a couple of ways. Their meats are all imported and they specialize in making their own charcuterie without any chemical preservatives. At the same time, you'll find seafood, cheese, fruit, and high-quality brands both big and small. To find out more, we talk to Brazilian co-founder Fred Clementi about how grandmarket started, why your WeChat store should be easy to navigate, and how to be heard in a chorus of other online supermarkets.

What is grandmarket and who are the people behind it?

Grandmarket is an online grocery store based in WeChat. It was started by me, as a co-founder, by investing in a sausage factory in Shanghai before deciding to promote affordable and high quality food products to consumers in China.

Co-founder Fred Clementi handling the daily deliveries.

What makes you different from other online grocery stores?

Price, quality, and timing. We are always better than other online grocery stores in at least two of these very important market details. Some competitors we beat in quality and service, others we beat in price and quality. But we are not happy enough yet. We want to make sure grandmarket is better in all three.

All your meat is imported. Where do they come from?

We work exclusively with imported meats from qualified sources in Argentina, Brazil, USA, Australia, and New Zealand. Our seafood comes from places such as Norway, Spain, and South East Asian countries.

You started out as a meat and sausage purveyor before branching out. Why did you evolve?

We understood that our clients also had other needs. They were buying our products and they were happy with the quality and service, but they had to look for another online store to find bread, pasta, or a jar of pickles. When we were 100 percent sure that our own products were already selling themselves, we negotiated with other importers to bring in what we call "essentials". It was the right move. And we are currently adding more categories like frozen food, imported fruits, vegetables, and more.

You make your own charcuterie. What makes them special?

They are chemical-free products and made only out of meat, without artificial fillers. Most people doubt the quality of the sausages and ham in China. They don't know what is added to those products At grandmarket, you know.

You stock high quality well-known brands. What do you look for in an item before selling it?

They need to be recognized worldwide. Our Chinese customers often travel abroad, they go to grocery stores, they see those brands, and when coming back to China, they can find them at grandmarket. But we don't go only for the well-known brands. We are aware that there are high quality products produced by smaller companies and when we find a good opportunity for mutual growth, we add these products.

Who comes up with the recipes that you regularly post?

We are about to partner with a very famous internet food platform to provide specific recipes using our products. And they will be also in Chinese.

Why target the stay-at-home parents as your customers?

Because we know they grow tired of eating outside every single day. The main cities in China offer a huge variety of restaurants with flavors from any small corner of our planet, but nothing is better than mama’s pasta or daddy’s barbecue. Not to mention, of course, that it’s way cheaper to prepare your own meal.

Where do you think food safety standards are now in China?

From 2003 when we arrived to now, food safety is a billion times better. The government is paying a lot of attention to it. I am sure that this will become a well-controlled country in terms of food safety soon. However, China is a really big country and some things happen underground. We still have to be very careful what we eat in here.

Since you started operating, have you seen an evolution in the way people shop for groceries, and how will that change in the future?

Our WeChat platform is very intuitive. From the registration to the final click when purchasing, we make sure no information is missed. When we started, 50 percent of our customers were between 23 to 34 years old. Now it’s spread to 21 to 47 years old. More people are shopping on online platforms for their groceries.

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