A Letter to Meijer

Or any other large grocery store chain

This idea came to me as we were having breakfast with my brother and sister-in-law this past weekend in Chicago. We were talking about grocery shopping in a big city and some of the ways the chain stores in these areas accommodate busy professionals – like delivery. I thought, why can’t suburbia stores do the same for us busy moms?

I would really appreciate your feedback and any other suggestions you may have. And pass this along to anyone you think may be interested.

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June 10, 2009

Dear Meijer, Inc.,

I am a busy, working mother of two small children (I have a two-year old daughter and a son who is 6 months). My day looks about like this:

6am – Wake up and workout
7am – Get ready for work/kids wake up
8am – At work
5pm – Home/spend time with my kids
6pm – Dinner with my family
7pm – Dishes/baths/playtime
8pm – Kids bedtime
9pm – Collapse

As you can see, there’s not much room here for a grocery shopping trip for a family of four. And the weekends don’t get much better – yard work, family/friends, kids’ activities….it doesn’t stop. As much as I appreciate the fact that you are open 24 hours and yes, I suppose a Sunday night trip – after the kiddos hit the sack – works (since that’s what I frequently do), but frankly, by that point, I just want to sit in my recliner and relax for an hour or so before I go to bed and start my week again.

I’d like to lay out a suggestion and hope you’re receptive to it:

Online grocery ordering with pick-up or delivery service

Ok – before you start laughing, hear me out.

The basics:
A Meijer shopper visits meijer.com, logs into an account, creates a shopping list and orders. The order is sent to their desired store, fulfilled by Meijer employees, bagged and either delivered (for a nominal fee) or prepared for pickup by the customer at a desired time.

Sounds pretty simple, right? Well, I’m sure in my brain it is, but truly – it can’t be that hard, can it?

Set-Up:
Create a Search able Database of Items: Done by utilizing your store inventory and uploading your bar code/merchandise information.

Create a Shopping List Application on meijer.com: Creating an interactive application at meijer.com with predictive search and the ability to edit or update an item based on desire for the order – number of items, weight, flavor, etc.

- Many heads of household – who do the main grocery shopping – know their grocery items pretty well. While preparing for a large trip, most people create their grocery list prior to going to the store. Whether this is done on a yellow pad or an iPhone app (see below), the ability to create a list on your computer – on the meijer.com website – would most likely NOT be a huge shift for most people.

-Note: I currently use an application for my grocery list on my iPhone called GroceryIQ. The application has this type of predictive search ability–minus generic brands such as Meijer or Food Club. Easy to use and develop my list. The meijer.com application could be very similar to this.

- Application would store “Favorites” and “History” so the shopper can easily populate a list based on previous shopping trips and things they buy the most.

Execution:
A Meijer team – let’s call them the “Time Saver Taskforce” – is designated for fulfilling and delivering online orders in each store. The order comes in with the list separated by aisle, list is printed – or better yet, loaded on a handheld PC or iPhone, “Time Saver Taskforce” shoppers (who have the ultimate familiarity with the store) fulfill the order, are checked out in a designated area of the store, groceries are bagged and either sent out for delivery – in a Meijer-branded vehicle – or set for pickup by the customer.

Each order is charged an additional 5% to the final cost of the order. Deliveries are also charged a $10 fee.

Now, I’m a marketer by day but a mother 24/7. I get jazzed thinking about how much something like this at my local Meijer store would allow my week to go so much smoother. Put the order in at my lunch hour while at my office and pick it up on my way home. Dinner is on the table by 6 PM. All for only an additional $6 (typical weekly spend for my family is around $120-$140).

I’d love to hear your feedback or questions, if you have any. You may contact me anytime at notaperfectmom@gmail.com.

Thank you for your time,

Rachel A. Bryant