Size matters: Two zucchinis raise shopper’s eyebrows over price
- Replies 17
The grocery shopping experience is changing before our eyes, and while a lot of the technology-driven modernisations of the industry are great—especially for those who want to save time and money—not everything turns out well.
Take, for instance, the case of online grocery shopping. Sure, it’s great to browse from the comfort of your own home, but there are disadvantages to it, too.
For one, it’s easy to get disappointed when shopping online, specifically when we don’t get what we expected.
This was the case for John, a shopper from Sydney’s Inner West, when he placed an order with Woolworths’ online grocery delivery service MilkRun for an upcoming weekend dinner party.
Upon receiving the order, John discovered two zucchinis—one small, one large—which both cost $1.25.
'I thought, “This is stupid,” and had a laugh at first but, really, it should be measured in grams, not by quantity,' John said, feeling gobsmacked.
'In some situations, they might be able to get away with it, but not when there’s a sizeable difference between big and small.'
The smaller zucchini weighed in at 26 grams, while the bigger one was a whopping 89 grams. However, according to MilkRun’s pricing system, both cost the same amount.
Owned by Woolies, MilkRun sources its stock from Metro stores in areas like Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Canberra, with an expected turnaround time of 33 minutes on average.
MilkRun charged John more than double the price for produce compared to buying it in-store, where the same vegetable was only $5.90 per kilo—or about 52c for the similarly-sized zucchini. This also does not include the $5 delivery fee.
'I understand there’s a convenience factor, and I will pay the delivery fee, but at least give me the correct quantity of products I am asking for,' John said.
'It’s not like I am going to order a box of cereal, and they’re going to give me half a box.'
Graham Cooke, Head of Consumer Research at Finder, explained that the price of convenience comes at a cost when you’re unable to select your products, as is the case in services like MilkRun.
What products ultimately end up getting picked all falls on the staff assigned to an order. This also means shoppers cannot take advantage of deals that can only be seen if one wanders the aisles of supermarkets personally.
Cooke would know, having a similarly disappointing experience.
'I ordered four avocados for a dinner party and, when they arrived, I could have used them to smash windows,' he said.
‘These services are aimed at last-minute needs, but they can underperform.’
After voicing out his concerns, John was refunded for the items he purchased via the app and was immediately given a $5 credit.
MilkRun issued a response and said: 'Our pickers are encouraged to select produce for our customers as if they were shopping for themselves. However, we don't always get it right.'
'Just like regular Woolworths customers, if MilkRun customers are ever dissatisfied with the quality of produce they receive, they are welcome to contact us for a refund, under our “Fresh or Free” policy.'
You can read more about MilkRun’s 'Fresh or Free Guarantee' through this link.
Members, what do you think about John’s MilkRun experience? Have you experienced something similar with the online delivery services of your go-to supermarket? Share your experience with us in the comments below!
Take, for instance, the case of online grocery shopping. Sure, it’s great to browse from the comfort of your own home, but there are disadvantages to it, too.
For one, it’s easy to get disappointed when shopping online, specifically when we don’t get what we expected.
This was the case for John, a shopper from Sydney’s Inner West, when he placed an order with Woolworths’ online grocery delivery service MilkRun for an upcoming weekend dinner party.
Upon receiving the order, John discovered two zucchinis—one small, one large—which both cost $1.25.
A Woolworths shopper received two sizes of zucchini but paid the same price. Image source: Yahoo News / John.
'I thought, “This is stupid,” and had a laugh at first but, really, it should be measured in grams, not by quantity,' John said, feeling gobsmacked.
'In some situations, they might be able to get away with it, but not when there’s a sizeable difference between big and small.'
The smaller zucchini weighed in at 26 grams, while the bigger one was a whopping 89 grams. However, according to MilkRun’s pricing system, both cost the same amount.
Owned by Woolies, MilkRun sources its stock from Metro stores in areas like Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Canberra, with an expected turnaround time of 33 minutes on average.
John was charged the same price for the two pieces of zucchini that had different sizes. Image source: Yahoo News / John.
MilkRun charged John more than double the price for produce compared to buying it in-store, where the same vegetable was only $5.90 per kilo—or about 52c for the similarly-sized zucchini. This also does not include the $5 delivery fee.
'I understand there’s a convenience factor, and I will pay the delivery fee, but at least give me the correct quantity of products I am asking for,' John said.
'It’s not like I am going to order a box of cereal, and they’re going to give me half a box.'
Graham Cooke, Head of Consumer Research at Finder, explained that the price of convenience comes at a cost when you’re unable to select your products, as is the case in services like MilkRun.
What products ultimately end up getting picked all falls on the staff assigned to an order. This also means shoppers cannot take advantage of deals that can only be seen if one wanders the aisles of supermarkets personally.
Cooke would know, having a similarly disappointing experience.
'I ordered four avocados for a dinner party and, when they arrived, I could have used them to smash windows,' he said.
‘These services are aimed at last-minute needs, but they can underperform.’
After voicing out his concerns, John was refunded for the items he purchased via the app and was immediately given a $5 credit.
MilkRun issued a response and said: 'Our pickers are encouraged to select produce for our customers as if they were shopping for themselves. However, we don't always get it right.'
'Just like regular Woolworths customers, if MilkRun customers are ever dissatisfied with the quality of produce they receive, they are welcome to contact us for a refund, under our “Fresh or Free” policy.'
You can read more about MilkRun’s 'Fresh or Free Guarantee' through this link.
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