Superquinn launches drive-in shopping via internet

SUPERQUINN has launched Ireland’s first drive-in shopping facility from its internet shopping site, Superquinn.ie.

With Click&Collect, customers can shop on line anytime and then collect their purchases from a drive-in collection centre at their convenience, for a charge of €5. This covers the full service of shopping, picking and packing. The first temperature-controlled collection centre has opened beside the Superquinn shop in Lucan, Co Dublin.

Groceries will be ready for collection within three hours of ordering and will be loaded into customers' cars on arrival at the centre.

Three years ago, Superquinn became the first supermarket in Ireland to offer internet shopping.

The start-up phase of Click&Collect will create ten jobs in the Lucan area. As the business grows and further collection locations are opened, the number of new jobs will increase.

Superquinn says it is introducing this service the first of its kind in Ireland to facilitate shoppers who cannot be at home to take deliveries. Busy lifestyle and working arrangements mean consumer demand for convenience is intensifying, said Geraldine Penney, business manager of Superquinn's internet shopping site, Superquinn.ie.

"The challenge for supermarkets is to respond to changing needs with innovative ideas. Many people want to shop on-line and then collect their shopping at a time that suits them, rather than wait in for a delivery. Click&Collect offers a further layer of convenience. The shopping will be ready for collection at the appointed time and loaded into the customer's car. There's no queuing, no waiting this is the most stress-free way to shop. Click&Collect is the first such service of its kind anywhere and we believe it will prove very popular with our customers," she said.

Superquinn is a partner in Buy4Now, Ireland's first retail portal site, which recently announced a 40% increase in sales for 2002.