By Kevin Williams
I have a tortured experience when going grocery shopping with my 2-year-old. Â On one hand, I love spending the time with her. Â We peruse the aisles, talk about our favorite foods, and usually pay a visit to the toy aisle just to browse. I have some wonderful grocery store memories with Aster. Â On the other hand, what should take a half hour can sometimes take three times that long as I chase Aster around, she stops at every shelf to look, and attempts to sneak items into our cart.
So my local Kroger chain has unveiled "Clicklist" an online grocery shopping option.  You visit their website and using data of  your previous purchases from the store loyalty card it sort of already has your grocery list largely filled in.  You can add other stuff to your cart.  After you've shopped, you select a one-hour window in which you'd like to pick up your order.  This all sounded very appealing to me.  What would possibly take 90 minutes with Aster, she and I could simply do in 10 minutes by pulling up to Kroger and getting our groceries.  It's a win for all of us, because I'd have more time to spend with Aster doing something more meaningful.
So, yesterday, after we shopped online Aster and I headed to visit my grandmother in the nursing home. Â After all, since we'd be saving so much time from not having to navigate the grocery store, we'd have plenty of time after my workday to hang out with G.G. (Aster calls her G.G...for great-grandma ). Â So we visited my 91-year-old grandmother, I tried to explain to her about the grocery ordering online and we had a nice visit. Aster loves visiting GG but it is hard to find time sometimes, using ClickList freed up some time.
Don't schedule your grocery pick-up for the "after work" time period or you'll get caught up in this mess.
Then it was on to pick up our groceries. Â My first mistake? Â Scheduling it for the 5 p.m. - 6 p.m. slot. Â That is when everyone is getting off of work and, apparently, wanting to swing by and pick up their groceries. Â A double line of cars snaked through the Kroger parking lot and onto the main road.
Groceries getting loaded into cars...
So we wait. And wait. And wait.  50 minutes later we are pulling up to the ClickList lane where a kind, but frazzled, employee puts our groceries in the car and goes over our grocery list.  That part could potentially be embarrassing. Because if something is out of stock, they'll either tell you or they'll substitute it with something similar.
"Sorry, Mr. Williams, we were out of that brand of hemorrhoid cream, but we subbed it with something else."  Again,I didn't have anything in my order like that but it'd be a little unsettling to have a grocery clerk providing commentary on my purchases.   And the substitute items aren't always on the mark.  They subbed some of Aster's favorite cereal with "Polar Puffs"......
Not sure how Aster will feel about having her favorite Jungle Berry Crunch swapped out for Polar Puffs
So, the substitute selections are a drawback.  Also, I guess I just like to pick out my own stuff. Especially produce.  Each time we have used ClickList, the cantaloupe or watermelon I ordered just wouldn't have been a container I would have picked out myself. Another drawback (or plus, depending on how you look at it) is that your "impulse buys" are greatly reduced.  No opportunity to grab that turtle fudge ice cream you didn't need.  On the other hand, by not walking through the actual aisles you may miss the peanut butter that you need but forgot to put on your grocery list....
ClickList is free the first few times and then there is a $5 charge to use the service.
My verdict: Â I think this may well be the future of grocery shopping, but I don't think it's quite ready for prime time yet. Â Close, but not quite. Â And the 20 minutes each way I spent driving to Kroger (not every Kroger offers the service), plus the 50 minutes waiting in the car (Aster was very patient), Â I didn't save a bit of time.......Now, to try those Polar Puffs....
brenda
going to the grocery store with a list to hand over to the clerk behind the counter is now back but in car rather than stepping into the store. clerk still filling the order though. ironic ??
Kevin
Brenda, you are right, I hadn't thought about it, but it's like grocery shopping has come full circle!
Lynn Van
Kevin, do take Aster to the grocery. She has to learn the ins & outs of shopping. If she wants a toy, take her to the library to pick up some books she likes. I taught all my children shopping habits. When she learns adding & subtracting, have her sum up the things you are buying by dollars in one's. She will then know just about how much she is spending although not the exact number. It is very easy to do this. When you are at a local pizza house or any fast food restaurant, give her the money and let her pay. I bet she will love to do that. She seems to me to be a very brilliant child and can learn very fast with the articles you write about her. I have four grown children, ten grandchildren and four great grandchildren and I am so proud to have them!
Kevin
Lynn, those are good ideas...I do try to do a lot of that, but next time we go out to eat, I'll have Aster pay, she loves being "involved" in any transaction, etc, so that would be good for her. And congrats on all those grandchildren and great grandchildren, it'll be awhile before I have any of those! - Kevin
xaviere
Heck ya, and it should be too. I get panic attacks grocery shopping, and having to haul my goddaughter around makes the experience more aggravating. Also the pretty packages the impulse of buying of crap I don't need and stays in the cabinet until the moths make use of it.
Thankfully I work night shift, so I can pink it up on my way home. I guess next time do it the morning or late at night, that seems to work.
Carol Lukaszewicz
As for me, I would rather keep grocery shopping "up close and personal". Just my opinion.
Thanks for the article though. Quite interesting. Blessings