Shoppers in Richmond Hill will soon be able to pre-order their groceries online and swing by the store to have their purchases loaded into their vehicles.
A Loblaws location on High Tech Road in the Toronto suburb has set up a bright red archway in its parking lot that marks the assigned parking spots for "click&collect" customers.
Subscribers to the new service will soon be able to choose their groceries online and pay with a credit card. Customers then drive to the assigned, red-painted parking spots and wait for an employee to bring the purchases to their car.
The "click&collect" pilot project mirrors similar programs used at stores in Western Canada, across the U.S. and Europe.
In B.C., three locations of Save-On-Foods allow customers to order online then pick up their purchases later. The store also offers home delivery in the Vancouver area.
The U.K.'s Tesco uses a program by the same name, letting customers have their groceries pre-packed and ready to go when they arrive. The service is free when you spent 25 British pounds or more, approximately $45 Canadian.
Sainsbury's offers a click-and-collect system on all purchases except food and entertainment items.
Though Loblaw Companies Ltd. is remaining tight-lipped about the service until it launches, most "drive-thru" systems have customers shop online, then give an approximate time that they'll swing by the store to pick up their purchases.
Users may soon also have the option to pick up their groceries at nearby Shoppers Drug Mart locations, according to Loblaw chairman Galen Weston, who discussed the program with media in May.
