The evolution of the global grocery industry has been exemplary and quintessential in the past decade.

It has witnessed some tremendous growth and transformations. The world has become a melting pot, and people from different cultures have been coherently merging. From different cultures coming together in a pot of appetising meals, grocers have bridged the gap by providing indispensable grocery products. Just like grocers from the EMEA and Americas region, retailers from the APAC regions have also innovated their grocery businesses. This article highlights various Asian food and grocery firms have been ranked on the basis of their revenue generation, unique business model and similar other factors. 

1. Woolworths Australia 

Woolworths, owned by Woolworths Group, is the largest supermarket chain in Australia and is loved by many customers due to its exceptional offerings and smooth customer experience. The retailer has around 1,076 stores across Australia and a growing family of 115,000 employees in stores. Woolworths generated a revenue worth AUD 63.67 billion in 2020. Shoppers love to order groceries from Woolworths as it sources 96% of its fresh produce and 100% of fresh meat from local farmers. The grocer maintains an impeccable level of freshness of its fresh vegetables and fruits. Woolworths is also ranked as the most disruptive grocer. Along with grocery shopping, the grocer helps shoppers in finding the perfect healthy recipe for their family. Additionally, the app aids customers in generating a digital shopping list to help them remember all the required ingredients for cooking. 

2. Umamicart

Umamicart is a digital Asian grocer operating in the US. From Tufo, and ramen to Asian herbs and spices, the online grocer delivers everything shoppers need to make Asian meals. Andrea Xu, the CEO and co-founder of Umamicart, came up with a distinctive startup to serve the growing Asian community in the US. The online grocer rolled out its app and services in early 2021 and witnessed a double-digital growth month-over-month. Growing up as a third-culture child, Andrea wanted to make it easy for Asian American customers to add Asian grocery products to their cart and get them delivered in no time. As per TechCrunch’s findings, the grocer enjoyed its total funding raised to $7 million. 

3. BigBasket 

Online grocery is gaining traction in India faster than ever, and many startups have entered the digital grocery space in the nation. As per the recent Redseer report, India’s online grocery retail market will reach $10.5 billion by 2023. BigBasket, a grocer run by Tata Enterprise, holds a huge share in this fast-growing market and is the leading grocer in India. The founders, including V.S. Sudhakar, Hari Menon and others, revealed that the Bengaluru-based grocer receives around 150,000 orders per day. Fintrackr reported that Bigbasket’s B2b arm recorded a 73% growth in its operating revenue from INR Rs. 3,794 crore in the previous fiscal year 2020 to INR Rs. 6,558 crore in the fiscal year 2021. 

4. China Resources Vanguard

After the US, China is the leading grocery industry at roughly $1.5 billion a year each, according to IGD. China is believed to have deeper market penetration and offers advanced digital payment options paired with online grocery delivery services. China Resources Vanguard, headquartered in Shenzhen, China, is a retail pioneer and oldest firm in the country and one of the leading retailers. The retailer just raised $400 million in a private funding round ahead of its proposed initial public offering in Hong Kong, as per BnnBloomberg reported. CR Vanguard operates over 3,240 self-owned stores across China with over 170,000 workers. The brand offers Tesco Express, Suguo and Ole shops in its retail outlets.

5. Tops Market (Thailand)

Tops Market retailer is the leading grocer in Thailand. Shoppers love to visit Tops to run their grocery errands as it offers them everything available under the sun. The grocer rolls out large retail outlets and refills the inventory with a wide variety of products. Its stores usually cover 3400sqm, having more than 17,000 items. Tops follows a unique business model to cater for consumers in their nearest vicinity. Central Retail Corporation planned to inject USD $3 million to remodel Tops Market with an updated retail footprint. The firm has now started offering pharmaceutical supplies and wishes to convert its stores into a one-stop-shop for consumers.