This past Sunday, as I went into my local chain supermarket, I was suddenly struck by the fact that I was surrounded by a sea of shopping services - not just a few as I usually see, but packs of them, with large carts with shelves to be loaded with items for other things.
I mentioned it to my coworker - and she told that in fact, there were multiple shopping services! (Who knew?) Ones that do a single store, ones that do multiple stores - and stores that provide their own shopping services. I asked her what the price was - for the one she had used (the store providing its own shopping service), the price was $5.99 plus a tip to the driver.
That got me to thinking. For the grocery store that is already buying the groceries, $5.99 is a loss leader. What does shopping take now? 30 minutes? 40 minutes? In an age of time being less than money, they can afford to effectively lose money and still profit by locking people into the service. I imagine shopping services without their own direct supplier will be at a bit of a loss as they will have to do something else to buffer the profits - but I bet they have already figured out what that is.
Suddenly I saw a vision of grocery stores being shopped not by actual end user shoppers, but rather by shopping services, individuals in their logo shirts putting things into cars as they dodged around the person stopping to get a few things or that relic, the actual person actually shopping for themselves. And with fewer shoppers and those shoppers trained (or even employees of the store), suddenly the need for clerks to check out the items becomes less. Then, even the shopping services and stockers themselves can eventually be replaced by machines (Yes, with a little readjustment and logically framing and a slight increase in technology, it can be done).
I wonder perhaps if some day my own children will tell their grandchildren about going to the supermarket. The grandchildren will look at them in wonder and say "But Grandma, everyone knows that groceries come from the autonomous cars that arrive at our house."
One more way to remove people from where their food really comes from.
ReplyDeleteNow don't get me wrong. There's undoubtedly a need for such services. It's common in England to order online and the store deliver.
I see them here only occasionally. Here, though, the big thing right now is buy online and an associate fills the list and brings it to your vehicle.
If it wasn't for my brothers in Michigan, my mother who can't drive or walk well, would have a very hard time getting groceries without a service like that.
But with people who say "Don't kill..." whatever, "just buy it in the store", well, that bothers me. Just like the big increase in GMOs in everyday foods.
Sorry. Got off on a tangent. I expect the buying services will be similar to the grandparent saying "I used to walk five miles uphill..." in an effort to motivate. :-)
I don't think I could ever shop that way. Well, firstly because that service isn't offered here in the mountains...but also because I'd wonder if I was getting the overstock or the freshest stuff. Shopping once a month for me is an 8-hour endeavor. I leave around 8 in the morning and I'm never back before 3-4pm. The travel time and shopping with the flyers to different stores is what takes so long, but it's worth the savings in the end.
ReplyDeleteGood point Linda - Yes, it does provide a needed service for some (similar to the potential of self driving cars, I suppose) but it is yet another step in the removal of where the food comes from. Eventually it will be "Food grows in the car" - because that is where it comes from.
ReplyDeleteYes Rain, you are at the mercy of whoever is picking up your food. Canned goods and other items are pretty easy to verify. Fruits and vegetables, not so much.
ReplyDeleteGood heavens! 7 hours shopping? Sounds like quite an ordeal. At least it is only once a month. We seem to do once a week here with a run every two weeks to Costco.
I remember living in downtown Montreal, a big grocery store chain offered online ordering, that was back in 1996-ish, the internet wasn't as well known back then, but I tried it out! If what I ordered wasn't available, they substituted it, but didn't give me the sale price, so it was a big mess when the guy came with the delivery and I refused some items. Never again!
ReplyDeleteI do the shopping once monthly in order to save on gas and hassles. It's also become quite a money saver for me! I have to go to the local place once during the month for milk and herbs and veggies, but what a life save that was. I'm not fond of ANY shopping!!
I remember a web grocery service in the late 1990's - WebVan, maybe? It was a sort of pre-Amazon grocery idea. It went bust because it was too early for its time.
ReplyDeleteI am not a fan of shopping either. I go in, get what I need, and leave. Other than bookstores, there really is no reason to linger.