Grab Thailand has unveiled its "Food and Grocery Trends Report 2023", highlighting delivery preferences such as omni-commerce and the integration of digital platforms with out-of-home activities.
Grab reported som tum poo pla ra (papaya salad with crab and fermented fish) and coffee were the most popular menu items this year, with more than 4.4 million and 4.6 million orders, respectively, via GrabFood.
Chantsuda Thananitayaudom, senior director of commercial and marketing at Grab Thailand, said for 2023 the company observed notable shifts in user behaviour.
More consumers are seamlessly integrating their out-of-home lifestyles with spending habits on digital platforms, said Ms Chantsuda.
She said Grab is enhancing its platforms by leveraging innovation and technology to develop various services.
This year, it introduced several new features, including dine-in, which offers a comprehensive experience encompassing restaurant search, reviews and discount deals for dining out.
The platform also promoted self pick-up, a feature that proved popular with office workers.
The report incorporates survey findings from Grab users in six countries, including Thailand.
Among the six key trends identified in the Thai market was omni-commerce, as users increasingly turn to food delivery apps to enhance their out-of-home experiences in the post-pandemic era.
During the first half of 2023, the combined order volume from both self pick-up and dine-in features surged by more than 23 times compared with the same period in 2021.
Self pick-up increased 140% in terms of order volume during the second quarter of this year compared with the fourth quarter of 2022.
The group order feature also did well with office workers, gaining by 1.8 times year-on-year, with spending per order increasing by 2.2 times.
Subscription packages also expanded as more users adopted monthly subscriptions to access greater discounts and additional benefits.
For example, GrabUnlimited subscribers' monthly spending surged by 2.6 times compared with regular users, accompanied by a 2.1 times increase in the frequency of monthly service usage.