Amy Gebler of Seattle, one of the first
epicenters of the coronavirus in the United States, claims that she has become addicted to scoring hard-to-come-by
grocery delivery slots. According
to The Wall Street Journal, the 48-year-old
single mother keeps carts on three separate platforms—Amazon Fresh, Safeway,
and QFC, owned by supermarket
chain Kroger—all of
which she monitors
constantly. Gebler refreshes t
Amid the pandemic, the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) has recommended curbside pickup or home delivery whenever possible. In many cities across the
country, shopping in-store has become quite an ordeal. Customers must cope with
long entrance lines, other stressed consumers seeking
to maintain a six-foot
distance,andempty shelves where high-demand
items would normally be located. Considering
this, people
and families
nationwide have resorted to online services. However, as the demand for
delivery has skyrocketed, citizens must be more strategic than ever to secure a
slot.
According to Gebler and other expert shoppers, individuals may set
As for Amazon-operated services, there are no
mandatory minimums. Fees range from $4.99 to $9.99, and exclusive deals are available to
$119-a-year Prime members. When
slots are full, Gebler notes that consumers may find more availability through the in-store pickup option
at Whole Foods. This is especially true for shoppers who are disabled, high-risk, and 60 plus,
as the chain has announced that it will
reserve the first hour of pickup for these folks.
Finally, Walmart imposes a cart minimum
of $30, delivery fees of $7.95 to $9.95, and offers free-delivery monthly and yearly memberships, priced at $13 and $98, respectively. The corporation allows individuals
to update their orders after they are placed, as long as it is before a
cut-off time. Furthermore, Walmart enables them
to snag a slot up to seven days in advance.
Gebler warns
consumers about Chrome extensions and scripts, which may be malicious and capable of
harvesting one's personal information. Though
"delivery checker" browser tools may be tempting, she
states that it is
wise to ignore them for this reason. Happy shopping!