Germans turn to retailers as healthcare frustration grows in new survey
Munich Retailers are taking a closer look at healthcare provision, with dm and Kaufland leading the way. Management consultants are welcoming the trend: according to Deloitte, a recent survey reveals that roughly one-third of Germans are dissatisfied with the country's general medical care. The issue, however, is not quality but availabilityâwhile demand for healthcare services rises, hospitals, doctor's offices, and pharmacies are increasingly stretched to their limits. Long wait times for appointments are a major source of frustration. As a result, around 60 percent of respondents could imagine turning to retailersâsuch as supermarkets or drugstoresâfor select healthcare services in the future. The biggest reservation remains concerns over the quality of medical care provided.
The February survey of 1,000 German consumers showed that the country's healthcare system faces significant structural bottlenecks, Deloitte reports. A majority of respondents could envision retailers helping to ease the strainâfor example, by offering services like eye tests or blood draws. Drugstores were seen as the most suitable setting by 39 percent of those surveyed, followed by shopping centers at 25 percent and supermarkets at 17 percent.
Still, about one-third of participants said they would continue to seek such services exclusively from doctor's offices, highlighting both untapped potential and the need to build greater trust. The retail sector's key advantages, according to respondents, include shorter wait times (47 percent), convenient locations along routine errand routes (35 percent), and easy appointment scheduling (34 percent). Diagnostic services like eye or skin tests were preferred by 43 percent, compared to 29 percent for over-the-counter medication purchases and 27 percent for telemedicine consultations.
"Customer focus has always been critical in retail, and that same strength could help the sector make inroads in healthcare," says Egbert Wege, a retail expert and partner at Deloitte.
Quality Concerns Persist
The success of retail-based healthcare services hinges largely on perceived professionalism. Nearly half of those unwilling to use such offeringsâ48 percentâcited concerns about service quality as their primary reason. A general lack of trust (16 percent) and hygiene concerns (13 percent) played a secondary role.
"We advise retailers to collaborate closely with traditional healthcare providers to send clear signals of qualityâthrough partnerships with medical specialists or certified providers, for instance, and by establishing well-defined training standards for staff," Wege explains. "This approach could merge the best of both sectors to better serve public health."
The survey also found that 52 percent of interested consumers would even switch their usual store to access a healthcare service while shopping. Additionally, there is strong demand for expanded product ranges near these services, including dietary supplements (45 percent), natural remedies (43 percent), and medical aids like reading glasses or inhalers (37 percent). "By offering high-quality, trustworthy healthcare services, retailers can stand out from competitors, attract new customer flows, and broaden their product lines," Wege concludes.
