Many South Africans have never shopped online for essentials before, until the coronavirus pandemic hit our shores, which was then followed by a nationwide lockdown. Picture: Thobile Mathonsi/African News agency(ANA)

Johannesburg - Many South Africans have never shopped online for essentials before, until the coronavirus pandemic hit our shores, which was then followed by a nationwide lockdown.

South Africans are buying food using online services to get their regular groceries as the pandemic rapidly spreads and forcing everyone to remain in their homes, fearing to go to the grocery store.

The sudden change in how consumers purchase their products has brought a rush of new orders to these companies, which have been trying to convince shoppers to buy their foods online so that shoppers can comply with the 21-day lockdown and reduce spread of the virus.

A few online grocery stores have come up with new innovative ways of customers doing their day-to-day shopping.

Pick 'n Pay Galleria located in Amanzimtoti, KwaZulu-Natal has introduced WhatsApp to its customers for their shopping pleasure. Customers can WhatsApp their grocery list and will get goods delivered to them.

In an article published on IOL, Morne Pretorius, the Store Manager for Pick n Pay Galleria said that they started this service to offer customers support during the time of the coronavirus.

According to an advert from the store, the delivery of goods would be available to people that lived in the Amanzimtoti area and surrounds. The delivery cost is R60 but it is free to pensioners and for orders that cost R500 or more. 

Another way of shoppers being safe is a drive-thru initiative again by Pick n Pay to better serve their customers during the coronavirus lockdown in the country.

Shoppers won't have to leave their cars to do their groceries anymore. Here’s how the service works:

• You will need to email your order to your local Pick 'n Pay store with drive-thru service.
• You will receive a two-hour notice about your order.
• You will have to park your car in a designated spot in the Pick n Pay shop’s parking lot.
• A Pick n Pay staff member delivers the groceries and loads them into your car.
• You pay from within your car through a sanitized credit card machine.

A few franchise Pick n Pay stores will offer the drive-thru service to their clients.
With these new innovative ideas shoppers might consider not going to the grocery stores anymore, they might just use their cellphones and laptops to do their online shop essentials.

Article Source: https://www.iol.co.za/technology/mobile/coronavirus-may-permanently-change-how-we-buy-our-food-46312985