Walmart now testing local grocery pick-up option in the Denver area

Shawn Knight

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walmart begins testing online grocery shopping local store pickup option denver walmart online grocery shopping

Walmart’s on-demand shopping service has expanded in one test market to include an option for local pick-up. In addition to home delivery, Denver-area residents can now elect to shop online and pick up their groceries at a local store, all without having to step foot inside the discount department store.

Shoppers place their order online and will receive a call when the goods are ready for pick-up. Upon arrival, customers can pull up to a designated area outside of the store for pick-up and either call a phone number or enter an order number into a touchscreen kiosk to let staffers know you’ve arrived. In the event the store also has a pharmacy, pick-up will take place right at the pharmacy window.

Of course, Walmart is also hoping that customers might park, enter the store and snag a few extra items – perhaps something they forgot to add to the online order earlier in the day. Once in the store, executives hope customers will see even more items they wish to buy.

It’s worth pointing out that the pick-up option isn’t replacing the home delivery option. Instead, it’s all about choice according to Walmart director of public relations Ravi Jariwala. Customers will ultimately dictate what shopping method is most convenient for them.

On-site pick-up is available at 11 stores in the Denver area as of writing. No word yet on when or if the company plans to expand the service to other markets.

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I can see doing this for the elderly or handicapped. If someone is capable of doing their own shopping; they have no grounds for complaint, if they are not satisfied with someone else's selection of merchandise.
 
If someone is capable of doing their own shopping; they have no grounds for complaint, if they are not satisfied with someone else's selection of merchandise.

I agree that people who can go out and do their shopping should be doing just that, but this is still almost like that except you don't have to deal with actually going in the store, and when it comes to Walmart that's a huge plus to me. My first job was working at one and has left me with such a bad taste that driving past them let alone entering one makes me cringe, but I can't help but buy crap there because of the price... That being said, if I made a shopping list online which had X item selected, lets call it Battlefield 4 for PS4, and I received Y item, BF4 on Xbox1, I would not be satisfied. And considering every item in their inventory has a bar code which would likely have to be scanned in to the order to be completely, making wrong orders next to impossible. Think of it like ordering from Amazon, wouldn't you expect them to get it right the first time too?
 
Think of it like ordering from Amazon, wouldn't you expect them to get it right the first time too?
I was thinking along the lines of buying an egg carton with a busted egg, or a gallon of milk that expires in 4 days. Maybe even getting overripe banana's, slightly bruised applies, green tomatoes, small head of lettuce, and fatty meats. When you pick items from a limited selection yourself, you have a tendency not to complain as badly. That is when you know first hand, there were no better selection available.
 
Walmart produce isn't first choice selections. Other major supermarkets get first pick in quality. That's how Walmart can sell Bananas and Pineapples so cheap. I'll get the organic scallion only cost less than $1.99 where as everyone else doesn't carry it. Using this service just not going to work here in deep south. Ice cream would surely melt quick in this head. The Ford Transport Connect I believe if they use those would need some sort of cooling system. Up in New England Market chained call Super Stop n Shop had tried this and it never really took off.
 
But what if the service actually saves you 2 hours of your time....surely that is worth something ?
 
Sure is, it equals two hours of someone else's time. Surely no one will expect to save two hours of their time for nothing.
 
There is actually a good lot of innovation happening in the grocery industry. A lot of major chains now have store apps where you can see their weekly flyers and clip digital coupons which are linked to your customer loyalty card. This grocery pickup feature is pretty cool but it's not exactly new. They've tried this in a number of different capacities at other chains. I remember this being available at a grocery store in 2002 in fact. It didn't catch on then, but that's not to say that it's not going to catch on now.

There's a lot of "up and coming" technologies that are supposed to revolutionize the grocery industry. Not much has really stuck around though. Going through a checkout lane at a grocery store is largely the same now as it was in the 90's, the exception being U-scans. God I love U-scans.
 
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