If one decides to open an online food shop, the first thing to ask oneself should be: why should people buy foodstuffs on an e-commerce rather than in their trusted delicatessen or in the supermarket? There are countless reasons why people should do grocery shopping online or buy delicacies on the Internet; let’s take a look at them together.

What do we mean by “foodstuffs”?

Foodstuffs are, by definition, products that we eat, but in Italy specific products can be associated to one particular place. That’s why this term could mean different things for different people. For instance, when I think about “foodstuffs”, I also think about the delicatessens, butcheries and little grocer’s shops that I can find in my  village, those shops where we would go to buy a sandwich during the school break. Other people would probably think about their local supermarket.

Therefore, all those people buying food products online are looking for either products that can be found in the supermarket, but at cheaper prices, or genuine and particular products that are more difficult to find in a shop or in their city.

Why do we buy food online?

We can buy different kinds of food online: fresh food, farmer’s food, take-away, food packaged in big batches, Italian delicacies or food from all over the world. We can really buy anything online and there are many advantages to it.

No queue, stress-free

Buying food online means, for instance, avoiding queues and chaos. It is very easy to buy Italian food online from the peace of your home or from your office during lunch break. You have time to think about what you want to cook or what you want to stock up on, without being bombarded with promotions at the supermarket.

You can buy food online at your own pace, at your convenience and constantly checking what you’re buying. However, it is important to always choose professional e-commerce shops which guarantee fresh products and deliveries ensuring the product integrity.

Whenever we do grocery shopping online, we usually buy more than just food. You can also buy commodities, home products, products for animals etc. You can put whatever you want in your cart and that’s a need that only an online supermarket can satisfy, and probably not an e-commerce only selling food products.

Selected, hard-to-find products

We usually buy Italian food online that is hard to find. These products cannot be found in the supermarket, because they are niche products or they are artisan handmade products which cannot satisfy the requirements of large retail groups (formats, supply demands etc.). And they’re also difficult to find in your local delicatessen which can satisfy your bare necessities but not your gourmand taste.

And that’s another reason why you should buy Italian food on a website: selection. Unless you live in a big city with a great high-quality gastronomy, it’s hard to find prime Italian delicacies in a supermarket. But you can find them all online. You can find both food products from very small manufacturers and great delicacies from big Italian brands, which are tested and tasted by our online shop’s gourmets.

It is an actual research work which allows gastronomy lovers to try out new products, hidden gems and products that ought to be tasted.

Italian food available everywhere

People would usually buy Italian food online, if they feel like eating truly Italian products, but are not in Italy. In London, New York or Paris, you can probably buy the most important and famous Italian delicacies, but they are not always easy to find. That would take you a long time and require a pretty big budget, without mentioning the fact that you cannot be sure of the product quality. Like those “Italian sounding” product scams that are not Italian at all, such as the infamous “parmesan cheese”.

However, we would also like to argue in favour of those big Italian gastronomy shops which carefully and successfully select and protect true Italian food all over the world, but they are unfortunately not many.

An e-commerce selling Italian food online can ship Italian delicacies all over the world, in compliance with each country’s custom restrictions. For instance, according to US law, it is forbidden to send meat products, fresh meat, cured meats or cold cuts to the USA. It is forbidden to send honey to Australia. Apart from these restrictions, you could purchase Italian food online from wherever you are in the world.

Tasty, worry-free gifts

You can also buy online food and delicacies to gift to your loved ones that live far away. You can gift a great gourmet hamper to a friend living in Paris, even if you live in a small village in Chianti.

It may not be easy to take care of the packaging, making sure that the courier properly handles the package, finding food-safe synthetic ice to make sure that the food stays fresh even after a two-day long trip…

Which kind of food can you buy on the Internet?

You can find everything online; that’s a fact. You can find fresh products, perishable or non-perishable food. What’s the difference? Non-perishable items are all those products that can be stocked in a pantry and do not require to be kept at specific temperatures (preserves, beans, biscuits, flour, coffee, jams etc.).

As far as fresh and perishable foods are concerned, they both need to be kept at low temperatures: perishable items should be kept at around 4°C to 10 °C and fresh products below 4°C. Therefore, if you wish to buy perishable or fresh products online, it’s important to make sure that the company packs food in a proper way to guarantee the product’s high quality.

The most beloved Italian foods online are cold cuts, cheeses and fresh meat, as well as all those products that are handmade by family businesses.

We are constantly looking for and selecting true Italian delicacies. Our headquarters are located in a small Tuscan village but, thanks to our e-commerce, great Italian food has come all the way to Alaska, Singapore, Dubai and all over Europe!