“Digital? There are some good things and some less so . . .”: Understanding the ambivalent attitude of local food shoppers toward digitalized short food supply chains before and during the March 2020 lockdown

Abstract

While the digitalization of retailing is praised by producers selling their local food through short food supply chains (SFSCs), what do shoppers think? To address this question, this research seeks to understand how shoppers react toward digitalized short food supply chains (DSFSC). A qualitative study was conducted through semi-structured interviews with 20 shoppers who utilized DSFSC for their local food shopping. These 20 shoppers were interviewed twice: before and during the March 2020 lockdown. The theoretical contribution of this article lies in understanding and conceptualizing the ambivalent attitude of shoppers toward DSFSCs. While shoppers manifest polarized reactions – positive or negative – toward specific attributes of DSFSCs, other attributes elicit both positive and negative reactions. Furthermore, the two-phase qualitative study reveals the limited influence of the lockdown on shoppers’ ambivalent attitudes toward DSFSCs. This observation is supported by quantitative work during thematic content analysis, which we highlight for its methodological value. From a managerial perspective, we propose a framework for producers to identify reactions toward DSFSCs, segment and target customers, and communicate effectively.