Because Even in the Chaos I Need #Groceries @LoblawsOn #ClickandCollect

Loblaws has a new service called "Click and Collect"!

It's a simple concept: Order your groceries on-line and pick them up at the store. 

My life is busy and chaotic at the best of times, so I'm always interested in products and services that help calm the chaos. My perspective on the value of a product or service is greatly impacted by that fact I'm Mom to two teenage boys, often referred to as "The Evil Teens". 

Non-response to enquiries about which grocery items they want AND refusal to accompany me grocery shopping to choose items themselves, followed by complaints about there never being anything to eat only seconds after returning from said grocery shopping is just one of the ways they've earned their "Evil Teens" title. 

On any given day, week, month I'm suppose to read their minds and know their latest dietary goals, cravings and food preferences. "Anything to eat" means snacks and baked goods one day and ingredients for an omelet the next.

It's a constant cycle of not having what they want or guessing wrong and watching food spoil or expire only to be fed to the compost bin. 

With Loblaws' Click and Collect the evil teens don't even have to move from the chair they're lounging in, they simply click using the piece of technology currently in their paws to add the items they want to the grocery order. 

On August 2nd placed my first Click and Collect order. 

I picked my COLLECT store, date and time, and then browsed by aisle, food type, searched for specific products and perused the flyer. Once I was finished I handed my phone over to my husband and kids so they could add any items they "needed" and pressed 
CLICK. 

Nice Feature: If an item on your order is out of stock you have the option of allowing your personal shopper to pick a substitute for that product on your order. EG: If they are out of your brand of chicken strips they will find another brand of chicken strips similar to the ones you ordered.

Another Nice Feature: I received email confirmation of my order as well as a notice that I could edit my order anytime up to 11:59 PM on August 3rd. 

On August 4th I "Collected" my order!

What I liked about Click and Collect:

• I can order groceries on-line 24/7 from the house, while waiting for the kids, or during lunch hour at work. It saves on the commute time, eliminates standing in line, and is a great time saver for a busy family.
• Everyone in my family can easily add items they want to the grocery order thereby eliminating the guessing game.
• I place and pay for the grocery order then have the option of having either myself or my son or husband pick up the order. 
• Another BONUS: In the past if I wanted my son to go pick up some groceries I needed to give him cash to pay with (assuming I had any) but I like to pay using my VISA. Click and Collect takes care of that problem.
• PC Points are easily linked to your Click & Collect account.
• I can easily edit and add items after I submit order. 
• There is the option to have the personal shopper filling the order make substitutions if an item ordered is out of stock.
• I get email confirmation when my order has been completed and a list of what items were not in stock or substituted.
• With the designated parking spots and call number you never have to leave your vehicle for pick up which is very convenient for parents with small kids, the elderly or those with mobility issues, everyone living through a typical Ottawa winter and me still in my yoga pants ... again. 
• Nathan and Duncan who took care of my order were a delight. They were polite, helpful, and interested in my feedback in order to make the customer experience outstanding, and in my opinion it was. 
• I found the price point for the Click & Collect service very reasonable ($3 off peak hours and $5 weekends and peak hours) My time alone has to be worth $5 plus my groceries are delivered to my car.
• There is no term or contract so Click and Collect can be used on occasion as needed or weekly for your regular grocery order. 

The only thing I didn't love was I had to decide on store and pick up time before starting my order. I would like to be able to have a running saved grocery list my kids, husband and I add to until I decide when and where I want to collect the order. I tend to shop once the list has reached a size that warrants the time and gas of the trip or we have run out of essentials. In fairness I don't transition well and it may just be a matter of me getting used to it.

The truth is my life with two teens is busy and chaotic, but even in the chaos I need groceries and Click and Collect can help with that. 

 How would Click and Collect help with your busy life?

Yep, just me Cathy thinking out loud about grocery shopping. 

Note: I received compensation in the form of a Loblaws gift card in order to try LoblawsOn Click and Collect service. All opinions are my own based on my personal experience with the brand and service.