You could call it the downfall of our generation, or you could call it ingenious innovation. Most of the time, technology exists to bring convenience to people. This is one of those instances. Someone out there, who opened the fridge door only to be welcomed by an endless abyss of nothingness, probably thought, “Damn it, I’ve so busy with work and family and socialising that I forgot to stock up on groceries. If only there was an app that lets me buy groceries…” For those who prefer shopping for groceries while watching Netflix in their PJs, this one’s for you. All you need to do key in your postal code to see which partnering stores you can shop from, click on what you want from those stores, get your credit card ready and checkout. Someone else will do the shopping for you. Easy peasy. They all do pretty much the same thing, but they do have their little differences here and there.
****
HONESTBEE
Release Date: July 2015
Delivery Charge: $10 + $2 for Concierge Shopping Fee. Free delivery with minimum $30 purchase.
Delivery Time: 1 hour from the moment you click checkout (the site will show you the earliest delivery slot too)
App: Yes (iOS & Android)
You don’t have to worry when you’re shopping with honestbee because they have trained shoppers (or shopper bees as they call em’) who provide a sort of “concierge service”, where they’ll handpick every item just like you would. For example, they’ll pick a proper, fresh papaya instead of taking one off the shelf just to make sure they get it to you on time. And if there’s an item that’s out of stock, you can have the option of having them contact you to suggest replacements. But more importantly, honestbee started out as a social impact business looking to provide people who have difficulty in working fixed hours with sustainable income opportunities. Since their launch till today, they’ve created more than 1,200 jobs (in case you’re interested, check it out here). They’ve also provided retailers with a platform to increase their reach without having to create one themselves. It’s a win-win situation for everyone, including us consumers. Some of their partners include NTUC FairPrice, Cold Storage, Jones The Grocer, Butcher’s Dog, Four Seasons Organic Market, Gastronomia, MMMM!, GNC, Pet Lover’s Centre, Fine Brands/Crystal Wines, Joe & Dough, Ben & Jerry’s, Little House of Dreams, Laurent Bernard, Wein & Vin, Wine Connection, Thirsty, Organic7Days and Daily Juice.
—-
REDMART
Release Date: August 2011
Delivery Charge: $7
Delivery Time: Within the next two days (2 hour slots)
App: Yes (iOS & Android)
Think of RedMart as the Uber of grocery shopping, except that they don’t do same-day deliveries. They’ve been around for a while now and obviously have a bigger consumer base. They’ve moved into a 100,000-square-feet temperature-controlled warehouse where they keep their stock, which helps them to ensure the prices of goods and to control the quality of each delivery. They work like a supply chain company, right from picking out the products you want, to packing and finally to the delivery. They’ve also recently started a marketplace for merchants, where sellers can tap on their logistics network to reach out to more consumers. They already have about 100 independent sellers (RedMart doesn’t keep their items in their warehouse), so you could very well buy stuff from PasarBella along with your usual snacks that’s available from their warehouse, all delivered to you on a stipulated day.
—-
KENNY GROCERY
Release Date: 1997
Delivery Charge: $7
Delivery Time: Mondays to Saturdays, 1pm-3pm (for offices, Bukit Timah & Holland area) and 4pm-7pm (island-wide)
App: No
This one’s a little old school. Kenny, the business owner owner, has been in the grocery business for over 30 years, and have been delivering fresh groceries to families since 1997. He started it so that people can spend more quality time with their families as opposed to going through aisle after aisle to get their groceries. It’s important to get your orders out by 2.30pm so that they can deliver them on the same day, but you can call them up if you’d like to have a special or specific time slot. They’ve got a bunch of organic fruits and vegetables, along with other stuff like general goods and supplies.
—-
PURELYFRESH
Release Date: July 2014
Delivery Charge: Minimum order of $49, with $6 delivery fee for orders below $75.
Delivery Time: Daily, in 2-hour slots from 10am to midnight
App: No
It’s almost like you’re right there, shopping at the wet market. PurelyFresh has been in the industry since 1998. They started out as a wet market vegetable stall and have taken the natural route of business expansion into the World Wide Web. Now, with wet and dry markets in Woodlands, Sengkang, Punggol and Tampines, they offer fresh produce and household products that are handpicked and packed straight from their markets. There’s even the option to customise your meat orders without any additional costs, just like at the wet market. So if you’d like your pork belly to be cut into smaller pieces, just write it down in the comments section and the butcher will prepare it accordingly. You can even order Halal meat if you prefer (just note it down on the comments section too). They offer same day and next-day deliveries within 2-hour time slots. But their version of “same day” is a little different from the likes of honestbee; if you make your order before 3am, you’ll get your groceries on the “same day”, and by that they mean within the next 24 hours.
—-
THE USUAL SUSPECTS
Don’t worry, if you’re looking for an online grocery delivery platform but aren’t really up to trying these one-stop websites, your usual suspects have also gone online. Yes, obviously they’d want a piece of that online delivery pie, so if you’re more familiar with their products and aisles, this is for you. Their delivery fees and times all vary, so you might want to check em’ out below:
• NTUC FairPrice
Delivery Charge: $10.70 with orders less than $60, $7.49 for orders more than $60, $26.75 for bulk orders (more than 600 items per order) and free for orders $150 and above when charged to Plus! Visa/NTUC Plus! Visa Credit/Debit Card
Delivery Time: Deliveries available from Mondays to Saturdays, between 10am to 10pm. See table below.
App: Yes (iOS & Android)
• Cold Storage
Delivery Charge: $12 with orders less than $60 and $7 with orders $60 and above
Delivery Time: Daily, between 9am-1pm, 2pm-5pm, 6.30pm-9.30pm, depending on when the order is received. See table below.
App: Yes (iOS & Android)
• Giant
Delivery Charge: Delivery charge of $12 with orders less than $60 and $7 with orders $60 and above
Delivery Time: Daily, between 9am-1pm, 3pm-6pm, 6.01pm-9pm, depending on when the order is received. See table below.
App: Yes (iOS & Android)
You must be logged in to post a comment.