The Netherlands is home to one of the fastest-growing e-commerce markets in Europe, estimated to reach a turnover of 36 billion euros by 2021. Consumers increasingly depend on buying online, and this is not restricted to electronics and clothing. More than 1 in 6 Dutch people do their grocery shopping online, reflected by the high density of Dutch supermarkets setting up online stores.
But while e-commerce and online groceries continue to grow, retailers have not developed effective urban distribution to match demand. Inefficient strategies result in cities becoming flooded with multiple delivery vans from the same company, causing traffic congestion and increasing greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, the service that consumers receive is unreliable and people often wait hours for a delivery to arrive.