Supermarkets are going back to the future

Supermarkets are going back to the future

The Conversation
03 Jun 2026, 23:50 GMT+

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Buying groceries at a big supermarket is a relatively new phenomenon. Prior to the early 1900s you would have done your shop in the small, family-owned, butchers, bakeries or greengrocers that lined our high streets.

Now, online shopping, "dark stores" and AI chatbots are helping with your groceries, and supermarkets are adapting. It might sound exciting, or terrifying, but what we're most interested in is what happens next. Will we trade choice, autonomy and our health for convenience? And will we even have a say when huge corporate profits are at stake?

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