Digital Ambitions and the Future of Spanish E-Grocery

When Antonio Rodríguez Lázaro assumed the role of General Director at Consum in 2012, the Spanish cooperative already held a strong foothold in its home market. But Rodríguez envisioned a transformation that would go beyond bricks and mortar. Under his leadership, Consum has spent more than a decade investing in digitalization, e-grocery expansion, and omnichannel retailing, steadily positioning itself as one of the most innovative supermarket chains in Spain.

Today, the cooperative operates more than 1,000 stores—nearly half franchised—and serves millions of “socios-clientes” (member-customers). Since 2016, it has rolled out its e-commerce service across multiple Spanish regions, competing head-to-head with retail giants like Mercadona and Amazon. Now, as online grocery sales begin to stabilize post-pandemic, Rodríguez is steering Consum into a new phase of growth, digital innovation, and customer-centric retailing.

“Nuestro comercio online continúa en expansión y, sobre todo, continuamos trabajando en la mejora del servicio para que sea una mejor experiencia para el cliente. Nuestro objetivo es dar el mismo servicio, con el mismo ámbito geográfico en el online que en el físico.”
— Antonio Rodríguez Lázaro, CEO, Consum

Six Strategic Objectives for the Next Stage

Rodríguez describes his leadership philosophy as one of “continuity with active listening.” For the cooperative’s next phase, he identifies six key objectives:

• Enhance the customer experience—both online and offline.
• Improve working conditions—economic, labor, and work-life balance for employees.
• Accelerate organic growth—with a slightly higher pace than recent years.
• Expand logistics capacity—to support the cooperative’s rapid expansion.
• Improve operational efficiency—particularly in high-volume processes.\
• Leverage new technologies—to improve the daily experiences of customers and employees alike.

These goals reflect Consum’s dual identity as both a modern digital retailer and a cooperative rooted in strong values of sustainability, fairness, and community.

Retail Footprint and E-Grocery Expansion

Consum began its online grocery journey in 2016, responding to Mercadona’s and Amazon’s aggressive announcements about entering Spain’s e-grocery space. From its home region of Valencia, the cooperative steadily extended its reach. By 2024, Consum’s online shop was serving over 500 towns and cities across Valencia, Alicante, Castellón, Barcelona, Tarragona, Almería, Murcia, Girona, and Lleida—with plans for continued expansion in 2025.
Despite growth, Rodríguez tempers expectations:

“Actualmente, la cuota del comercio online se encuentra en el 2%. En alimentación ni va rápido ni va a ir. Los países con más penetración… tienen un 6,5%-7%… Durante la pandemia creció, y ahora hay un cierto retroceso.”

2024: Growth, Innovation, and Investment

Despite Spain’s relatively modest online grocery penetration (2% of total grocery sales), Consum has been reporting steady progress. In 2024, the cooperative achieved:

• Global revenue of €3.8 billion, up 14.4% year-on-year.
• Sales growth of 7.5%, surpassing internal forecasts.
• €77.3 million in online sales, an 8% increase over 2023, representing 1.7% of total turnover.
• A 39% increase in innovation investment, totaling €26.9 million.

Rodríguez acknowledges the challenges:

“La preparación del pedido y el servicio desde la tienda al cliente no los repercutimos al 100%, así que es un servicio deficitario… Tenemos que mejorar básicamente en el canal online, que es donde tenemos más oportunidad. … Es un canal que tiene más costes que el canal físico… de momento, no está cubriendo gastos. Online es un servicio deficitario, pero hay que darlo.”

Logistics: From Store-Based Picking to Centralized Fulfillment

Until now, Consum’s online orders have been prepared in-store, with trained employees carefully selecting products to guarantee freshness, quality, and optimal expiration dates. While effective, this model is resource-intensive and less efficient in high-density urban markets.

To address this, Consum is developing its first centralized online order warehouse (NIDO) for the Valencia metropolitan area. Scheduled to open in late 2025, the 16,000 m² facility will streamline picking and distribution.

“Estamos diseñando una nueva forma de preparar los pedidos en un centro especializado… que tendrá unos 16.000 m².”

Private Label: Balancing National and Store Brands

Consum differentiates itself by offering a commercial model highly valued by its customers, built on a strong fresh product offering with staffed service counters, while allowing the shopper to choose between well-known national brands and store brand alternatives. This strategy is supported by competitive prices and personalized promotions.

Private labels (marcas blancas) continue to gain weight among consumers. Although growth is beginning to slow, a significant portion of shoppers remain committed to this category.

Currently, Consum offers 14,400 references, 85.5% of which are manufacturer brands and 14.5% store brands. In terms of value, private label represents just under 32% of total sales.

This balance strengthens Consum’s overall strategy: to offer choice and trust, ensuring the availability of national leaders alongside its own-brand products, while maintaining freshness, service quality, and competitive pricing.

Trends Shaping the Future

Looking ahead, Rodríguez and his team identify several key industry trends:

• Omnichannel integration
• Sustainability & local sourcing
• New store formats
• Data & personalization
• Automation

“Omnicanalidad: integración de tienda física, online, app y fidelización es clave. El consumidor espera flexibilidad total.”

Challenges and Outlook

For all its successes, Consum faces the same structural challenges as many grocers worldwide: high costs in online fulfillment, thin margins, and the need to balance digital transformation with cooperative values. But Rodríguez remains optimistic:

“Nuestro canal online no es rentable todavía. Pero es esencial. Los clientes lo esperan y es donde está el futuro. Digitalización no es opcional: es el camino.”