Comment by edw519 | Hacker News Reader

Comment by edw519 | Hacker News Reader

I love that you're going after a market so ripe for disruption, appreciate your coming to Hacker News for feedback/community, and I wish you the best.

But I think you have it backwards...

The real problem is not the time spent in the supermarket, it's getting there and back. You're addressing the wrong issue.

Many people want their groceries delivered for all kind of reasons:

  - They have small children they don't want to take with them.
  - Weather.
  - Traffic.
  - Health issues, elderly, shut-ins, etc.
  - They don't have a car.
  - They work and can only go the same time as everyone else who works.

On the other hand, if they are going to the trouble of driving all the way to the supermarket, then they might as well go inside:

  - to examine and choose their own produce
  - to examine and choose their own meat
  - to examine and choose specials (which can be done well on-line)
  - to handle and compare similar items
  - to consult with the butcher/deli manager/etc.

The negative attitude of employees you cite in your video has never been an issue for me. The only real issue has been the check-out lines: there are never enough, the lines are too long, and they are expensive to operate.

If you are seeking large amounts of investment, why don't you just attack the real problem: getting out of the supermarket without waiting in line. All the necessary technology is already available. I just want to fill my cart and go home.

Please don't become another Webvan. Take that money and leverage current technology to eliminiate check-out lines in existing supermarkets forever. That's what people really want.

We don't need more infrastructure. We need better use of technology in existing infrastructure.

Bar codes dragged us that industry into the 20th century. RFID can drag it into the 21st.

I find it really interesting that people who live in different areas will have wildly different thoughts on "driving to the store".

In Memphis, TN (and much of the US), most people drive to and from work. There's just no alternative for commuting, and I think Ernie's has a great opportunity to allow these people to fit a "stop at the grocery store" into their daily commute.

I'll admit that I often need to do a grocery run on the way home, and it almost always takes an extra 30-60 minutes. I'd love the opportunity to do that shopping online before I leave the office, and just stop to pick up my order on the way home. I can imagine this cutting my "grocery stop" time in half.

Full Disclosure: I know the founder, and I had a chance to "beta test" the idea. I drove a couple of miles out of the way and still got home 30 minutes earlier that I would have, had I stopped at my local grocer.

Completely agree. I never had a problem with rude checkout staff and I found that this site stressed that very heavily.

The reason I use Grocery Gateway (our local online grocery store w/ delivery) is because I live in a city and don't need a car. So I get all of my non-produce stuff delivered.

It's $8 for delivery vs a $15 taxi + the time it would take for me to get there and back.

Keep in mind that you are a patron of a niche offering. I'm happy that it works well for you, but grocery shopping still sucks for the vast majority of shoppers in the United States. Ernie's aims to address that need.

I'm wondering on what you base the claim that grocery shopping sucks for the "vast majority" of shoppers. Honestly, I can't remember a single time in my life someone has complained to me about grocery shopping.

I don't doubt you, but I've been doing market research, interviews, surveys and informal outreach for ten months straight on this issue. I assure you, in many markets, this is a serious pain point for consumers.

Not everyone, though -- some people genuinely enjoy the grocery shopping experience. For them, the supermarkets will always be there.

I don't really hear people complain about grocery shopping either.

But there are countless times where I've needed to do some serious grocery shopping, and I plainly just don't feel like going to the store. I've avoided the grocery store for weeks, because I just don't enjoy being there. And I'd rather spend that time doing other things. Which, is my problem, yeah, but if someone is offering a solution...

How much of it sucks because of grocery shopping in general vs. being in food deserts[1]? I also happen to live in the same place served by Grocery Gateway, but stopped using it years ago because the service fee increased and the selection decreased. On the other hand, I subscribe to the delivery of an organic vegetable basket every two weeks.

Toronto is not a food desert by any means, with lots of fresh fruit and vegetable vendors on nearly every major street (where I live, there's three in close proximity; where I used to live, there were five or six).

That said, I think the concept described here is very useful for a particular class of shopping: that which one would do on the way home from work. Yesterday, I had to pick some stuff up from one of our local stores on the way home (Planet Organic); my wife made the shopping list. If she had been able to make the shopping list directly with Planet Organic and I would have been able to just go pick it up without spending an additional ~25 minutes wandering around the (small) store, I would have been home about 40 minutes earlier than I was.

One of the problems of modern grocery shopping is you're typically doing the shopping for at least a week at a time; Ernie's may allow your customers to shop for food more frequently in smaller batches, getting fresher produce every time. I'd push that concept forward.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_desert

Excellent feedback, thanks for it.

Your "quick stop on the way home from work" is our number one use case. I'm very happy it appeals to you.

Regarding food deserts, Ernie's is a great way of addressing this issue and we are pitching a major regional supermarket chain about it.

Great thoughts. Thanks for providing them.

I contend that, outside of a few high-population density areas, grocery delivery will never be a mass-market solution in the United States. It's simply too expensive. While others in the industry continue to beat their heads against that wall, I propose a very simple alternative:

Ernie's reduces the chore of grocery shopping dramatically, while at the same time operating at a fraction of the cost of a traditional grocery.

I'm not trying to compete with a hypothetical grocery store, I'm competing with the supermarket down the street from me (the one so many people complain about).

Completely disagree with edw519.

My real problems are:

1. Finding stuff in a store. I hate walking 10 aisles for 20 minutes to find that $2 bowl of noodles.

2. Asking store workers for product locations. Takes time & hassle.

3. Buying unnecessary stuff i.e. falling victim to marketing and product placement.

I do not mind driving to the store AT ALL, as it is usually one stop out of many. Often it is on my way back from work or school.

If you ever come to the Bay Area, I guarantee I will use your service if your prices are within 10% of Safeway or Lucky's.

Good Luck!

I like the idea. I'm much rather pick up my stuff than have it delivered. I don't want to wait around at home for the delivery and I don't want to wait in line at the store.

Edit: And as a plus - they could use Amazon like recommendation as customers are "shopping" instead of getting coupons after you finish your shopping - like they do in normal retail stores.

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