Buying Smartphones Through Food Delivery: How Instant Retail Is Reshaping the Consumer Electronics Market?

Buying Smartphones Through Food Delivery: How Instant Retail Is Reshaping the Consumer Electronics Market?The latest releases from Apple and Huawei have once again presented consumers with a tough choice, sparking a fierce competition for market share. The iPhone 16 Desert Gold sold out instantly upon launch, while Huawei's tri-fold phone garnered over 6

Buying Smartphones Through Food Delivery: How Instant Retail Is Reshaping the Consumer Electronics Market?

The latest releases from Apple and Huawei have once again presented consumers with a tough choice, sparking a fierce competition for market share. The iPhone 16 Desert Gold sold out instantly upon launch, while Huawei's tri-fold phone garnered over 6.25 million pre-orders within 10 days. This battle for dominance is unfolding across online channels and offline stores alike. Consumers are delighted by this rivalry, expressing their preferences with their wallets. However, a significant shift is occurring: platforms like Meituan, JD, Ele.me, Douyin, and Kuaishou are all actively developing instant retail. This means that both online pre-orders and offline scalping are becoming less crucial. With buying smartphones through food delivery apps becoming a viable option for consumers, these instant retail platforms are engaged in a fierce competition, while consumer electronics brands and retailers are exploring opportunities to expand through this burgeoning channel.

As consumers progressively embrace instant retail for non-essential purchases, moving from emergency situations to routine purchases, instant retail is becoming a mainstream sales channel for an increasing number of 3C stores. This evolution of "people, goods, and venues" has paved the way for a more predictable and lucrative market.

01 Gen Z Embraces "Everything Delivery"

On the day of the iPhone 16 series pre-sale, Chen Yu placed an order for the most expensive item he'd ever ordered through food delivery: the iPhone 16 Pro Max for 9,999 yuan. Seven days later, Chen Yu was woken up by a knock on his door, becoming one of the first in his circle to receive the new phone. "Got it without any issues, and even got a 16-month super membership, a real steal!" While he had seen posts on social media about people buying phones through food delivery, the real experience was something else entirely. Chen Yu told Computer Weekly that he would prioritize food delivery platforms over e-commerce platforms for future electronic purchases. "Food delivery platforms sometimes offer better coupons, and the speed is really fast, why not use them?"

With each new release from Apple and Huawei, bloggers share tips and strategies for securing a phone on launch day. This year, many bloggers have included using food delivery for purchasing in their strategies. "Get a new phone without leaving your home, with discounts and coupons stacking up, you can save up to 1,600 yuan." Chen Yu, after seeing this advice, decided to purchase his new phone through a food delivery app.

Previously, most consumers bought phones either online through official websites or offline at directly-owned stores or authorized dealers, neither of which offered the same convenience and speed as food delivery. Additionally, the generous discounts and interest-free payment plans offered by these platforms further push consumers towards this new buying habit.

However, this change is gradual. Before consumers started buying smartphones through food delivery, they first adopted the habit of buying "everything" through delivery apps.

Luo Jia, 28, has been using Meituan for over seven years. Starting with food orders, she gradually expanded her use to include fast-moving consumer goods and home necessities due to occasional needs. This led to her trying phone accessories, making multiple purchases of charging sets, phone cases, and other items. Finally, in October of last year, she purchased a new phone through a food delivery app.

Similarly, Xu Siqi, a member of Gen Z, has increased the proportion of daily necessities in her delivery orders. Whether traveling or needing something urgently, Xu Siqi has used food delivery platforms to order chargers, data cables, mice, and other items. This fast and convenient shopping method has transformed her overall consumption habits.

Individuals like Luo Jia and Xu Siqi, members of Gen Z, are changing the landscape of the entire instant retail industry. According to the "Instant Retail Consumer Electronics Industry White Paper" released by iResearch this year, instant retail digital consumers are primarily Gen Z, exhibiting a strong characteristic of "related purchases," leading to a linked consumption pattern of "accessoriesphonescomputers, digital productsappliances." Consumers' positive experiences with instant retail for accessories, phones, and other products enhance their trust in purchasing across all categories, transitioning them from infrequent to frequent buyers. Compared to offline channels, instant retail platforms are more appealing to younger demographics, with mobile instant consumption favored by 95 and 00 after generations, representing nearly 40% of users. For appliances, 85, 90 after generations are more likely to opt for instant retail platforms, with over 50% embracing this shopping method. Currently, Gen Z's penetration rate in Meituan Flash Sales is as high as 48%.

Whether it's "special forces" with limited time, "homebodies" preferring to stay indoors, "hurried travelers," or young people embracing hedonism and seeking immediate gratification, everyone is defining their own "individualized" approach to consumption. They are driven by convenience and emotional needs, fueling the growth of the instant economy. The trust and positive experiences accumulated from fulfilling essential needs through these platforms, along with surprise elements, encourage users to explore more options independently, transforming the instant consumption scenario from basic needs like food and daily necessities to encompass wider categories like "eating, using, gifting, entertainment, and purchasing." This has led to an explosion in the digital electronics category, with higher average order values, longer product lifecycles, and an increasing number of functional products. Instant retail is advancing towards all-scenario adoption, further refining the consumer journey from basic consumption needs to quality consumption needs and experiences.

02 What Chemical Reaction Has Instant Retail Triggered with 3C Digital Products?

This transformation in consumer habits and demands is underpinned by addressing core needs and an increasingly rich product selection. With the expansion of consumption scenarios and product categories, instant retail platforms face competition from traditional e-commerce platforms and offline stores alike. Their competitive edge lies in proactively adapting on the supply side, through internal strategic adjustments and external platform collaborations to optimize their channel ecosystem.

Taking mobile phone products as an example, Apple Authorized Resellers have partnered with Meituan Flash Sales since the launch of the iPhone 12 in 2020. Currently, nearly 7,000 Apple Authorized Resellers are on Meituan Flash Sales, covering over 2,000 county-level cities and districts nationwide. Compared to last year, the number of participating stores has increased by almost 2,000, and the number of stores supporting initial pre-sales has doubled. The influx of stores has significantly enhanced the supply guarantee and fulfillment capabilities of instant retail in various markets. In addition to Apple authorized stores in first and second-tier cities, stores in towns and those operated by telecom carriers have gradually joined the instant retail landscape.

Apple is not alone; Huawei, Xiaomi, Vivo, and other phone manufacturers are increasingly partnering with instant retail platforms. Since 2023, companies like Apple, Huawei, and Vivo have started releasing new products through Meituan Flash Sales. Over 75% of users receive their new phones within 30 minutes, with the fastest delivery time reaching 5 minutes and 36 seconds. The abundant supply of goods available on instant retail platforms effectively meets the needs of digital consumers.

Meanwhile, with the trend of "always-on" and "omni-channel" coverage, instant retail is becoming a "must-have" for 3C products to achieve sales growth. This is why an increasing number of 3C brands and stores are adopting instant retail as their primary sales channel, gradually expanding to third and fourth-tier cities and even township markets.

"As a member of the 3C digital accessories industry, we are acutely aware of the current state and future trends of our sector, and we are filled with optimism. The 3C digital accessories industry is currently undergoing a crucial transformation. Traditional sales models are no longer sufficient to meet consumers' demand for personalization and fast delivery. Instant retail, with its unique advantages, is becoming a vital catalyst for industry change," said Zhao Guocheng, founder of the Pinsheng brand, when discussing his perspective on the instant retail sector.

The impact of instant retail platforms on store sales is even more tangible. Chen Feng, who has run an Apple Authorized Reseller in a small town in Southwest China for nearly ten years, revealed that online sales now constitute the majority of his store's business, with over 60% of revenue coming from instant retail. In anticipation of this year's new iPhone, Chen Feng stocked up on inventory. On the day of the official launch of the iPhone on September 20, his store sold over 30 units on Meituan, with sales increasing by about 30% compared to last year. "Our town is a tourist destination, with a tourist-to-local customer ratio of about 6:4. Most online customers are new customers and young people. Whether for emergencies or everyday use, people are increasingly accustomed to buying phones through delivery platforms," Chen Feng explained. "Previously, if a tourist accidentally damaged their phone during the Water Festival, they would also order a new phone through a delivery app to address the situation."

Liu Zhen, who works at an Apple Authorized Reseller in North China, shares Chen Feng's sentiment. "People have become increasingly accustomed to ordering through food delivery apps. They know that the delivery comes from nearby stores, the price is the same, and it's fast, so why not?" In Liu Zhen's opinion, the biggest advantage