The Cost of Grocery Store Delivery Services

During the COVID-19 Pandemic, many grocery chains began offering delivery services. Customers can add items to a virtual cart, pay, and have the items on their doorstep within an hour. For busy individuals, this is a great option, but for the more budget-conscious, it lacks practicality. Customers have to pay an additional delivery fee which can vary based on order size and distance from the store itself. However, customers are not the only ones having to spend some extra cash on this service. In my opinion, it is not very profitable for the grocery stores themselves. Fulfilling these online orders comes with a plethora of associated costs. Stores have to hire additional workers to pick items from shelves, consolidate them, and prepare them for delivery. Once the items are taken off the shelf, more workers are then needed to update stock and replenish the shelves. These stores also need to hire delivery drivers and a delivery truck, which is expensive to maintain and operate. Until more cost-effective fulfillment methods are put into place, I do not think offering grocery delivery is a smart move for grocery stores.