The thing today, especially with the virus threatening our ever move, is home delivery of groceries and the pick and click services offered by chains like Walmart and Kroger’s.
We’ve successfully completed a click and pick at Kroger’s and just submitted another. We had to wait several days for our turn and didn’t get all we ordered. But the pickup was clean, safe, and quick. I pulled into the appropriate parking space, an attendant asked through the window for my name, and in a few minutes, they returned from the building with our order, which they quickly and neatly placed in the back of the mini-van.
Today we placed another order with Kroger’s but won’t pick it up until the middle of next week. They are obviously busy. Later today I placed our first pick and click with Walmart and it went very smoothly. I’ll find out tomorrow how the pickup part goes but the online experience was quicker than Kroger’s and best, it lets you know what is in or out of stock. When you are looking at department contents you’ll see pictures of each item. If the picture and price is nice and bright it is supposedly available. If it has been dimmed it is listed as out of stock. It will be interesting to see if this proves true at pickup time.
Both services provide you with a list of what you purchased along with a pickup appointment. You’re also provided time and date before which you can either cancel your order, part of your order or add items to your order.
I remember my mother in the 1950s calling Collins’ or Flynn’s Markets and ordering over the phone. We’d later either pick up the order or they’d deliver it to our house. So, what went around has come around.
We like these options as a means of staying safer during the pandemic but in reality, we’d much rather do our own shopping, I like reading the labels, comparing items, running into friends and socializing, and getting a little exercise. The only thing I don’t like about any option is that nobody has yet offered to carry our groceries into the house and store them in the pantry.
Yelp, Walmart has been great for delivery since Sept. As of last week have not been able to have delivery. Have done pick up 2x’s from Walmart and that has been a good experience. Naturally, it seems a lot of the items I would like have been out of stock, but if I keep checking back until the last moment, 1:45 am of the pick up/delivery day, I sometimes am able to obtain some items or at least one. The only item constantly out down here is Distilled Water.!!!! Be sure on Walmart to mark items you do not want “replaced”. They have been very good about replacing with like or similar items. Exception for me were gluten free ordered items. Hope your experience will go well. As for Kroger we do not have Kroger in Upstate. Fall of 2018 when I had shingles, I ordered through the delivery service, SHIPIT, that works for BiLo, Target, and now CVS (back then). I found the annual fee that had to be paid up front a bit steep for my purse, but gladly paid it back then. The service, nonetheless, was GREAT!. The person, usually a lady, would call and let me know she was entering BiLo to pick my items. She would then call if there was a problem and to see if I would like to replace. As for delivery fee’s with Walmart, I suppose you saw how that worked. I, at first , paid per delivery. Than signed up for the monthly fee of $11 and change/per month. Due to the discontinued delivery here in our area, I stopped stopped that. With pick up, no fee. First time I gave the young lady who put my groceries in my car trunk $5, it was pouring rain and I think she deserved it. This 2nd time I had taken $3 in coin out of our change jar, been there forever! She nicely told me they couldn’t accept it.!!! Really hope your Walmart pick up goes well for you. Not sure what we would do without it. The only problem here, put order in a few days before and then had to keep checking back to set up pick up time. The last time, left laptop on beside me, and woke at 12:30 AM, and was able to set time for pickup the next day. Kept checking back for items that may have been out of stock on my list and picking my own replacements if possible and adding if needed too.