How To Start a Personal Grocery Shopping Business
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Imagine this: It's 6:00 pm and Jane, a mother of three, is driving home, exhausted from a full day at the office. After picking up her children from the sitter, she remembers the pantry is empty, the refrigerator is barren, and they've already eaten out four times this week. Fearfully, Jane pulls into the grocery store parking lot and circles for five minutes trying to find a parking space. She drags the kids out of the car. As she walks up and down each crowded grocery aisle, her kids toss junk food into the cart left and right. Jane doesn't have a list, so there's no rhyme or reason as to what she puts in the cart. Regardless, it fills up with food quickly, and just when it feels like she's approaching the finish line, Jane sees the long lines at the checkout. Thirty minutes and $300 later, she's loading the kids and the groceries into the car. When Jane and the kids finally get home, it's almost 9:00 pm, and she's so worn out that she throws in the towel and hits the speed dial for the local pizza joint.
This scenario may seem a bit exaggerated, but it highlights the reasons why most people view grocery shopping as a hated household chore. The lines are long, the parking lot is crowded, it takes forever, it's expensive, and it's just not a fun way to spend your precious free time. The stress created by a trip to the grocery store can be eliminated by hiring a personal grocery shopper. Personal grocery shoppers offer an invaluable service to people who are short on time.
If you are looking for a way to earn some extra money, personal grocery shopping might be a great option for you. Unlike other small business ventures, the start-up costs for this endeavor are minimal. The biggest investment required is your time. Personal grocery shopping can be a full time job or a supplement to current income. The earning potential for a personal grocery shopper really depends on the number of clients you serve and how much time you are willing to devote to the success and growth of the business. Fill the most orders you can in the least amount of time to optimize your earnings.
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Getting Started
To get your personal grocery shopping business up and running, you'll need customers. A good marketing plan is essential. Create attractive flyers that highlight the services you provide. Include information on your flyers about how orders can be placed, contact information, and fees. Make yourself available via both phone and email. Potential clients may have a stronger preference toward one channel of communication versus the other.
Be strategic about where you distribute flyers. Seek out neighborhoods where most families have two working parents. Find neighborhoods populated by senior citizens who may not be able to shop for themselves anymore. Post flyers on bulletin boards at libraries, community recreation centers, and public swimming pools. Meet with grocery store managers and ask if you can post flyers on bulletin boards in their stores. Develop a professional relationship with store managers. They may be willing to hand out flyers to customers in exchange for doing a large volume of shopping at their particular store.
Targeting women is a productive strategy, since the female in most households does the majority of the grocery shopping and meal preparation. Place flyers on cars in school parking lots, or other places that employ mostly women. Posting flyers at day care centers might be a worthwhile plan for marketing your services. Parents who use day care facilities usually work full time and are more likely to sign up for a grocery shopping service. Email a copy of your flyer to friends and family, and ask them to spread the word about your new business. Word of mouth can be a powerful marketing tool.
Marketing is really the only start-up cost, as long as you have a reliable vehicle that can accommodate a large number of groceries. If you don't already have one, invest in a large ice chest to keep food cold if you plan on delivering multiple orders in one trip.
Sample Flyer
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Placing Orders
Try to keep order placement simple. There are many possibilities for how orders can be placed. Telephone, email, and fax are all good options. A standardized grocery shopping list might be helpful once you establish a large number of customers. Arrange the list according to where items are in the store to make shopping time more efficient.
Fees for Service
Like order placement, there are many different ways to set up a fee structure. If you want to keep things simple, charge a flat rate for each trip. For example, you could advertise a $40 shopping fee, which includes two hours of shopping, delivery, and mileage (cost of groceries not included). The downside to charging this way is that it will not appeal to customers with small orders. No one is going to pay $40 to have $20 worth of groceries delivered.
Arranging your rates according to the size of the grocery order may draw in more customers. For instance, you could charge $20 for grocery orders totaling up to $150, $30 for grocery orders totaling between $150 and $300, and 15% of the total for orders over $300. Once again, these fees could include shopping, delivery, and mileage. Other possibilities include charging separately for mileage, an extra fee for picking up coupons before shopping, or additional fees for shopping at more than one store.
Once your business is soaring, offer referral bonuses and other incentives to keep your customers coming back. Send out a weekly newsletter with outstanding grocery deals for the current week. Include recipes that use items that are on sale. Most of all, remember that one of a kind customer service is the key to a successful personal shopping business.
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Yes, it's a great opportunity for moms who want to earn a little extra money. You can even take your kids with you if you need to. Thanks for your comment!
I agree with RainbowRecognizer and up her one: This idea is *totally* awesome.
I am a single person, and I HATE GROCERY SHOPPING! I have never seen an ad in my area for a personal grocery shopper, but I will be looking for one now.
Shawna, your idea is fantastic whether you are a consumer or an entrepreneur. There's something in it for everyone. Plus, you did a great job with the business strategy, including the sample flyer, which shows the possibilities.
For anyone who is interested in pursuing this business, I'd like to offer a weekly menu plan that I created for those who cook for one. This plan can be modified for any number of people. I can see this plan as a great tool for entrepreneurs who would like to build this business. Let your imagination soar about how you would use it.
You can find this plan here on HubPages:
http://hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Plan-and-Prepare-Me
Both thumbs up on this one. What a great Hub.
Best regards, Sally.
Great idea. i was just kicking this around with my wife the other day.
Tom
Hi shawna,
Nice Hub, in this recession, i woun't mind doing it for some one. Good Hub? Are you from Kansas City?
it is a good idea well done,why didnt you do it??? and would be interesting to see how meny people give it a go. spose we will never know. think people will actually save money this way
Sharon-I think people can definitely save money this way simply because it eliminates impulse buys. If you only buy what's on the shopper's list, there won't be any added expenses like candy bars and sodas at the check out stand.
Shoesfact1-Nope, I've never even been to Kansas!
Sally-Thanks for the positive feedback. It's very encouraging to an uncertain new hubber like myself.
I like the suggested flyer- if I saw this in a store, I'd be tempted.
Wonderful article!
so true, then you could go shopping every once in a while for yourself and actually enjoy it. maybe buy a chocolate .
Awesome article, and very helpful too!
Thank you so much.
Amazing hub! Thanks a ton for the info. :)
Psioni-Thanks for the compliment on the flyer. I had fun making it.
I appreciate all the positive feedback everyone!
great article.
this is so good an idea, its life saving
Great advice! The sample flyer was good as well. I might have to suggest this to a few friends...
ib-I'm glad I could provide some helpful information to you. Do you plan on trying this idea?
rethansmith-Thanks for the comment...if you suggest this idea to friends, send them a link to my hub too :)
This idea is really great. It beats house cleaning and looks like a better income opportunity.
Yes, I'd definitely prefer shopping for a living over cleaning!
Great article! Need to think about doing this!
RGraf-Thanks for reading. If you try starting a personal shopping business, let me know how it goes!
Grocery shopping business sounds great!
Good stuff. Nice work and good hub. Thanks for sharing this information.
Sherlynavia-thanks for reading my hub!
nancydodds1-I'm glad you enjoyed this information.
What a great idea! I think I'm goin to try this...I'm in a small town, but I'm sure I can make it work.
Thanks!
Thanks for reading Rhelena. Be sure to update me with the success of your business!
Wow, this is a really awesome idea. There is grocery store chain in my area that has curbside pickup, where you can order online and then pick it up later, but I don't think anyone does the full shopping and delivery for you.
I think if you coupled this with a nice online store, that had pictures and images, allowing an individual to easily create a shopping list, this could have a lot of potential. You could even go so far as using the clients MVP card or whatever, so they still get points or milk coupons. Like Sally Trove said, having pre-made menu plans could add a lot of value as well.
This idea has a lot of potential.
Thanks, 49er. I thought long and hard about starting a shopping business myself. I had everything all planned out, and that's why I was able to write a hub about it in such detail. At the time, I really hated my "real job" and was trying to think of alternatives. Since then I've found a different job that I like 100 times more, and there's no way I could earn the same amount of money doing a shopping business. I still love the idea though, and I will keep it in my back pocket in case I ever need to generate additional income for my family.
I agree that an online store with pictures, menus, shopping lists, etc. would make the business incredible. Being able to place orders online would be awesome too. Thanks for all your feedback!
Like this idea as an alternative to "regular" jobs. One issue though...You would pay for the groceries yourself and then collect the money plus fee from the client afterwards..okay what if the client orders $300 worth of items? I do not have an extra $300 laying around. How would that work out?
Thanks so much!
Hi Jules. You may be able to ask for the payment up front if you know approximately how much the total will come to. I don't know how willing customers would be to pay up front. Otherwise you could just start with smaller orders and when you have enough money in your cash pool, then begin taking larger orders. Hope this helps!
I am definetly going to try this. I made my flyer and even have a website now with email. Where should I post the flyers? I also made a seperate flyer geared more towards the elderly. Would love some more advise!!
Great Debra! I would post the flyers on bulletin boards at grocery stores, and you could even ask the manager of your local store if he'll allow them to be handed out at the register. Daycare centers would also be a great place to post because working moms and dads are likely to be short on time to grocery shop. You can also post them at your church, your kids' school, local parks, community centers, community mailboxes, etc. Anywhere you can think of! The main thing is to get the word out. Word of mouth is incredibly powerful, so use that too. Email everyone you know and ask them to spread the word. For your flyer geared towards the elderly, find a senior center and post it there. Good luck! Make sure to let me know how it goes!
Thanks Shawna!! I will let you know how it goes, thanks for the luck and the great suggestions!
One other thought I had was to visit other local businesses and ask if you can post flyers there. In return, you could put their flyers in the grocery bags when you deliver the food. Just an idea!
Great Hub! I know a couple who started a grocery store business. I haven't seen them in a whilw but I hope they're doing well with it. One thing about this business, as you say, it doesn't take a lot of money at all to start up. Me personally, I would get the grocery shopping money upfront from clients, instead of afterwards. This way you can avoid getting stiffed!
Getting the money up front would be ideal, but it would be hard to know exactly how much to charge without buying the food first. Asking for a deposit might work well. Thanks for reading, multimastery!
How To Start a Personal Grocery Shopping Business
very good, I support you, come on , welcome to my hub!
I would try to find customers that all lived in the same general area say an apartment and /or neighborhood .That would make it easier on you and more convienent for your customers especially if you had to make multiple trips to the store or several different stores all in the same general area.
As far as money,I would only take customers who are able to pay cash if you can't trust them to write checks that are good.As for charges ,you might consider getting a website that has that kind of service available for your customers to use.as well as for the "terms" of your service For example ; any returned merchandise might require them to pay a small additional fee if it is a perishable item if your willing to go that route.Trial and error will tell the tale.Unless you know already by experiance what to expect.
I had another thought ,if you have a membership at cosco or one of those bulk item stores you may be able to give your customers a deal on a few things that they normally wouldn't be able to get at the supermarket.
Personal grocery shoppers?
That's a great idea, but it may take more energy to carry all the groceries around. It's also a great idea to help other people finding the local coupons they want, so they can clip and shop on their own.
There are many local coupon queens and coupn kings out there to help local residents save money shopping smarter. Check out the local TV station first. They may already have a list of personal shopper assistants available for you, if you don't have time to shop locally on your own.
Someonewhoknows-Thanks for your comment. I agree that finding people that live in the same area would be helpful.
Local Coupons-I don't think carrying the groceries around would be too exhausting. I am a die hard couponer, so I agree with what you're saying about saving money using coupons. I know a lot of people aren't willing to put forth the effort to clip and plan their shopping trips though. So why not capitalize on those who would rather have someone else shop for them? I enjoy grocery shopping because of all the incredible deals I find with coupons. So I guess that's why I thought this would be a good business idea. Thanks for reading!
O M G. This is a very intersting Hub. Verythoughtful and innovative.
Thanks for reading PC!
Great hub. I might mention this to my dd who just got married, in case babysitting doesn't work out for her. I'm glad you mentioned charging by the price of the order or size though. Because one local store we have shops and delivers groceries of any amount for a flat rate of only $10. But one thing, they only take online orders. My mom who is homebound, needs groceries delivered and does not have the internet, so I take her orders by phone and place them online. I babysit full time so I use their gro. delivery often myself, as I don't want to have to take the kids with me or have my own kids (teens) babysit them unless it's for a quick trip. They have things going on, too! LOL! Anyway, nice hub. Thanks for explaining how someone would do this.
Thanks for reading, Gwen. Wow, only charging $10 no matter the size of the order sounds like a steal for the customer! If I were running a shopping business though, I don't think $10 would be worth the time it takes to shop for and deliver a larger order. Glad you enjoyed this hub :)
Wow thank you for the ideas. I was thinking PayPal if needed for charge. I was wondering about food stamp cards though (EBT) any ideas on how to make that work?
I don't know much about paypal, but it sounds like it would be a good way to deal with the payment part of things. I don't have any experience with food stamps either. Sorry I'm not much help! Good luck to you :)
Hi Shawna! Thank you sooo much for the fabuous info! My friend and I are wanting to start our own grocery shopping business and this is just the info we were looking for :) I love the flier you made and the grocery list you made too- VERY proffesional! I was wondering if you could email me the originals so I could personalize them. Just let me know. Thanks!!
I did this for a number of years in Denver about 20 years ago. It worked well and once I guilt a clientele it was great -- especially in bad weather. As with everything, you must run it professionally and you must deliver what you promise!
Great post.
Hi Kristen-unfortunately when I created those documents I was using my old laptop that has since died. I don't think I have them anymore :( I used Microsoft publisher to create the flier, so if you have access to that program, it's really easy to use and I'm sure you could create one of your own. Good luck with your business! I'd love to hear how it goes.
Thanks for reading, KEckerle. It's nice to hear that you ran this type of business successfully.
If a client calls in to place an order, should i giv them the prices thats on my price list because i mite not know the price the shop is asking? Customers would like to know the total prices of what they'v ordered before hand.
Cassidy- You could quote them the store's regular price of the item, and then if it turns out to be on sale for less, they'll be charged less and might be really pleased. Does that make sense? Thanks for reading!
That is a good Idea for older people who have no way to Shop. They would I'm sure like a service like that.
Thanks dovechocolatier. I live in an area with a huge population of retirees, and I'm sure you're right. Thanks for reading!
Simple and superb idea. Easily executable when you try to serve the right crowd.
Hi.
Thank you for a very well researched business idea. It is a viable and practical idea and would work well in almost any place it is set up. Many thanks for a great idea.
Every success.
Hi Shawna,
It's funny that you put this artical out here, because I actually started this business about a month ago, because I was looking for a fairly easy busy to start up with less capital to start and right now I'm targeting grocery stores with a proposal of partnership. This is a great idea and it works for everyone, especially during those nasty days when you just really don't want to go out of the house or your just to ill. I'll let you know how it goes.
Good luck with your shopping business. Keep me posted on your success!
Shawna, this is a very creative way for busy moms or anyone looking to start their on business. Great article!
It's a good idea but I am worry how to pick correctly all needed items to avoid any mistake, maybe I should prepare a list of 1 supermarket to make it easier to the person who has orders. and (for example:if someone is asking fruits and vegetables, in our country there's lot of levels of same vegetable/fruit).
Thanks Adrienne!
Larissa-shopping only at one store would definitely simplify things. You would need to ask customers ahead of time if they prefer organic vs. conventional produce. Is that what you mean?
There is portable interac machines. I am not sure how much the cost though. But if you are running large customer base then it may work out in the end.
I am a military wife and a new mother who has been looking for something to implement our income!! I tried babysitting, but honestly do not like dividing my time away from my own new baby to someone elses child!! And because we move every year or so it's hard to find a good part time job. I have been thinking about maybe doing something like this! I am still trying to think over what to charge and how to collect though. I am a college graduate with a business degree and was working as a store manager before my son was born, and it has been hard living on only half our original income!!
Also, what would you suggest be the best type of schedule... tell people the days and times you are available to shop or shop according to people's schedules. I don't feel that you would make much of a profit shopping according to their schedules, but will you use your client numbers if you only use your own schedule?
And maybe have a set rate for delivery within a certain radius, and anything past that be so many dollars per mile more?
you really helped me out, i thank you so very much and i will not forget about you. to God be the glory!
I have had this idea since I was in college but not to shop myself but to set up as a business with multiple shoppers working for me. Just want tho thank you for all the information. So much of it is totally in line with my thoughts and ideas. I know this will work and I am in the process of setting it up. I was searching to see if anyone had actually been successful with the idea. I have found several businesses set up similarly but not exactly like the idea you have here and the one I hold dear in my mind. I have picked up several pointers from you and thanks again.
Glad I could help!
i thought of starting up a personal grocery business in March 2010. i did it for a while with only 2 clients. Unfortunately for reasons best known to them, they stopped placing their orders. im currently struggling to hook new clients. its a great business and can really become full time employment. Kindly provide advise
I've also been thinking about setting up a grocery delivery service. The one thing that concerns me is not knowing the demand for such a service. I haven't been able to find a business in my area (major metropolitan area) that does this and I'm wondering why. I find it hard to believe nobody else has tried this. For those of you who have started a business, have you seen a lot of interest? Thanks.
I have been thinking about this since 1989 I think its a fantastic idea.
My mother is currently starting one of these businesses with me and my brother helping out. If you are in the North East Florida area, there will soon be a Facebook page with information you will need to know before going to our website. It isn't currently up yet, but should be up and fully detailed in the next two weeks.
On a more personal note, I appreciate this site for helping my mom do what she has always wanted to do, work for herself! She is an amazing money saver and knows all the great places to shop. She can help someone who maybe just doesn't have time to do the research she has done to save the same way she does. (It has also given me, a college freshman in desperate need of money, a job! THANK YOU!!!!)
As for payment,I would suggest the clients purchase prepaid gift or credit cards that can be used and returned after each shopping trip or cash that can be used then change returned with the receipt after each trip.
Prepaid cards are a great idea, Sarah. Thanks for your feedback!
Robyn-I'm so glad this information was helpful. Sounds like your mom is an experienced saver when it comes to grocery shopping. I hope her business is a success!
do you need a business license or a DBA to do this sort of thing? I'll have no employers and working from home...
Rebekah-Honestly I don't know. Maybe someone else can answer that by posting a comment here.
I enjoyed your hub. Unfortunately, in my area the grocery stores deliver any size order to your front door for $20. Pick-up curbside at the store is $5. Place your order online and choose a pick-up or delivery time. It would probably work in a smaller community without grocery stores across the street from one another.
I agree this type of business would do better in certain markets than others. There is one grocery store in my area that delivers, but I don't know of any that do curbside pickup. Thanks for your comment!
This is a great idea but what is the potential income for a business like this. Do I need a car?
Unless you live in a city with an outstanding public transportation system, I don't see how this could be done without a car. The income potential really depends. You could do this on the side to supplement your primary income or try to make it a full time job. Good luck!
I actually came across your Hub while researching this idea. I plugged the idea into a search engine and came across this page. So far, it has been the most helpful article on the topic. I had some good ideas but you (and the others leaving comments) just added alot more! I am a 31-year-old widow looking for something to give me some extra income but, more importantly, a place to show my creativity and to help others. I already started a business (glass and metal engraving) with my mother a few years back and it's still doing well. Unfortunately, most of our customers order items for their wedding and that doesn't happen alot over the winter months. Anyway, thank you so much! I hope to read more posts from others that have tried this idea. If I decide to do it, myself, I'll let you know how it goes! I live in a fairly small town in WV and I think it would just BOOM here!
Jenny-Thanks for the kind words! I'm glad you found this article helpful. Good luck with the business and let me know how it goes! Also post any other tips or ideas that you have to share with others thinking about this type of endeavor. :)
Great article, thanks Shawna. Just did a rough calculation and it doesn't seem feasable to do this full time, which is such a pit - if I shop for one or two clients a day, I will only be earning half of what I do now. Any recomendations for those wanting to do this full time?
Kim-thanks for reading! I think you would have to shop for a much larger number of customers per day to make it a full time job. One or two wouldn't cut it for most people. You could start small as a secondary income source, and gradually add clients until it seems large enough to become your primary means of income. Just my two cents!
I also came across your Hub while researching this idea. Great and very helpful information. I lost my job this summer so I was thinking of something to do for extra cash. I have printed flayers already. I'll definitely keep you post it. Thank you one more time
I am in love with this idea! I had thought of offering it along with the local coupon deals as a service for those who don't have time to go to 5 different stores to get the best deal each week. I googled how to start & came up with your page. Thanks for all the info! Do you mind if I use your flyer as sort of a template for mine? I would re-make it, but it could be pretty similar.
Sure, Sarah! Glad I could help :) Good luck!
What happens if you buy the food, receive the check and it bounces? Just curious.
cgarwriter- Thanks for your comment. A cash only policy would prevent that problem. That's the best solution that comes to mind.
Hey Shawna, I googled grocery shoppers and found you, I see you started this 2 years ago and it's still got momentum! Well I was looking for ideas and like yours the best! Thanks for the advice and can I use your template as well?? Anyways I'm a stay at home mom and have some time in the afternoon so why not get some cash huh?? Heres to hoping it'll all work out! Scared out of my mind!
You can easily create an online grocery store at www.dailygrocer.com - over 40,000 grocery items are available for you to stock your online store. You get a customized url or you can link to it from your website.
Hi Shawna,
Do you need any approval from the grocery stores to purchase their groceries to sell and deliver to others?
Thank you!
I believe you are a little angel offering divine intervention for opportunity that is very likely and possible. God is so Good how he uses one of His to help many. Praise GOD. SO many side jobs or quick jobs have a down side I do not see any with this. Get the cash up front make it worth your time never sell yourself short. God thinks we are worth good pay!!
It is a tuff job and many people would easily come up with the bucks to be free of this resposibility. Thank You for caring and sharing. Are you an angel? I think so.
Love n Hugs DO come for a visit to my hubs when you are not shopping lol
Monica-
I wouldn't think so. Say you owned a vending machine, and you bought all the snacks to fill it at the grocery store. You wouldn't need approval for that. How is this any different? I'm just thinking it through! Plus, you're really just delivering, not buying and re-selling, right? Hope this helps :)
skye2day-
Thank you for such sweet comments!
this is absolute for some of us in the third world, i had the chance to travel other parts of the world and saw how amazing things work, i want to start a grocery store and i need all the help i can get pls anyone email nasindac967@yahoo.com for advices,and strategy on how to start and grow in this biz.
We provide that service in the South Florida area. If any one would be interested. Please contact us at www.timemattersconcierge.com
Thanks for the great article.
I am very interested in starting this business. I'd like to create a website that includes store items from the grocery stores I will shop from so the customers can pay online. I want the site to include prices as well. I want customers to be able to pay online, so all i have to do is shop and deliver. has anyone done this?
This is an awesome Idea that I have just started looking into doing for a side job.
I use tons of coupons and I was thinking I'd not only get the peoples lists but I would offer the sales I found and if I saved them $10-$20 with using my coupons I would charge an additional $5. If I saved them $20 and beyond I would get an additional $10
I have many receipts to prove my shopping record, plus if my coupons did save them more then 10 my clients will be happy to save some money and have the convenience of me shopping and lugging the groceries inside is a plus.
Shuan-I know there is a grocery store in my area that offers that service. You place your order online, and they deliver it to your house. I am not sure what they charge for delivery. I suppose you'd need to know a thing or two about web design and programming, etc. Good luck!
Jill-I'm a coupon queen too, and I've often wondered how I could put that hobby to use for other people. Sounds like you have a great idea brewing! Good luck and have fun!
This is a great idea, and I’m getting excited about planning and executing this idea into a business plan for myself. There is obviously a market and thanks for sharing, but, I am curious to know Why you gave this idea away ?. (Im glad you did : ) )..Obviously not for selfish reasons, by the all the replies, you had nothing to lose or gain by sharing. Thanks so much again.
Tina-I'm glad you found this information helpful! I wrote the article after seriously thinking about starting my own shopping business. I love to grocery shop and I thought it would be fun to have a business doing something I enjoy :) I just earn a lot more money at my "real job" as a nurse, so it didn't make a whole lot of sense for me. Glad I can share it with others though!
thanks so much for this. I am keen to try it out. I have actually been toying with the idea for sometime and found your site. Later on I would like to expand to owning a website and organizing some of the orders online. I live in Zimbabwe and I've noticed that people in general just don't have the time like they used to to grocery shop, its become such a chore. I hate it but I reckon that if I make a business of it, I'll enjoy it. I'm keen to liaise with the supermarkets and see if they'll give me a percentage of their margin if I bring more business to them thus increasing my profit too. I guess the minimum spending would be $100 or I was thinking of going to businesses and having individuals group their orders... will do more research and start it up. will update you on how it goes. thanks
Hi , thank you for great article . It's been really helpful .
would u mind if i used that flyer? slightly modified?
Troy-go ahead!
Thanks laydee!
Many thanks for this info. This may help me to set up grocery shopping in my area in UK.
Good luck Eric!
I saw something like this on one of those police shows think it was ncis and thought that would be a good idea.
then saw your article and everyone who i have said to that im going to see how successfull it is has said it sounds like a great idea.
so fingers crossed just need to build up a cash float.
One question i have is to do with the shopping list there is so many products on the shelves at the supermarket what is the best way to know what the customer wants?.
i started putting together a spreadsheet of all the products from the supermarket but that will take years.
any suggestions on how to simplify it?
I would love to become a personal shopper. I love going to the grocery store and using coupons to save money. I love the idea of being able to do this for someone who doesn't like going to the grocery store or doesn't have time to go. I live in Winston-Salem, NC and am very interested in getting started with providing this service to people. My email is tanyann11@yahoo.com if interested in contacting me.
Hey! I'm from the uk and searched more information about starting a personal shopper for the alday chores that are just time consuming my worry though is that all our major supermarkets are doing the delivery service which you place online only charge £5 per order and delivery can't seem to compete with that but it's a fab idea and I'm glad you posted this on here it's gave me advice. I'm stuck on the pay structure now.. Any ideas? Thank you x
@ Ditto
im starting over here in australia and all our supermarkets do home delivery yes for $5.00 upwards
How im doing it is im advertising that i will jump supermarkets to get all the specials most people would only do 1 online shop or get a delivery from 1 supermarket so they wouldent really save anything
I offer to grab all the specials from the 3 different supermarkets and buy my fruit and veg from a independant fruit barn as they are way cheaper
the thing is when a customer goes to the supermarket they buy everything in the 1 place they wont go to the independants to save money as people are lazy they will just get it in the 1 place and pay more.
I charge $30.00 a delivery and am aimig for upto 20 a day but the way i do it the customer will save $30 upwards on there shopping bill.
more info wanted? 28_weeks_later@live.com.au
Thats an excellent Idea. Thanks for the resourceful information
This is an excellent article. I was wondering how much I would need to charge and the way you put this makes it very clear and reasonable. Great read!
im loving the advice you just took a truck load of pressure off my shoulders. I recently thiught of the idea when i say my boses grocery list on the fridge 2 weeks after it had been put up, and i ran the idea past my parents and now im planning on starting with my newly found clients. Thanx alot.
Great idea. But will you need a business license for this?
I'm an extreme couponer starting a "Personal Couponer" business. Here's a link to my beginnings. And my link to my facebook so you can see how awesome I am! I hope to make a grpw a small business out of this for myself. and help many singles, couples, and families save a ton of money on groceries and more!
thank u
We're getting ready to launch our shopping service and live in Md. Would you happen to know of anything that might need to be done to cover us legally in providing this service? We're accepting checks or cash. My husband is just concerned that if we have a disgruntled customer that they might try to sue us in some way. Have you every known of anyone experiencing this. And your information has been a tremendous help. Thanks
Do you recommend the shopping paying for items at the store/s, and then getting reimbursed? Or, should they pick up their customers means of payment before shopping?
Wow, this is great. I've been trying to put up my own grocery store until I found your hub. It is an inspirational hub especially to those who are planning to put up their own business. I thank you for this. Marketing strategies is important to gather more customers in your store yet by giving them comfort while shopping.
My husband and I are starting up a grocery delivery service in Huntsville Alabama. I am interested in knowing the demand for this type of business also.
Hi,
Thanks so much for the info. I was wondering what would be a good idea in regards to how to schedule business hours? Also, how to plan the expected delivery date after the groceries have been ordered.
Would it be recommended for the shopper to pay for the items at the store first and then get reimbursed? Do you think one may open themselves up to being taken advantage of or do you think people would be honorable in paying after receiving groceries, since it is groceries (aka 'something they need'...)?
I was looking for a home based business myself and got introduced to an incredible opportunity with the home grocery pick up and delivery business. If you'd like information let me know.
I am moving in a week and I will be looking for a job so I am really considering doing this and seeing how it pans out. My concern though is...I don't want to get somewhere with the groceries and have the person "Oh, shoot, my husband has the checkbook" or "I'm sorry I don't have the money to pay you right now". Then I am stuck with these groceries and the bill. Any suggestions on how to avoid this?
a store in my town that have online grocery list shopping with price are on their web page but they don't shop and delivery how can i go about this please tell me something
could someone answer troy's question
One question i have is to do with the shopping list there is so many products on the shelves at the supermarket what is the best way to know what the customer wants?.
i started putting together a spreadsheet of all the products from the supermarket but that will take years.
any suggestions on how to simplify it?
AWESOME - I LIKE THE IDEA ALOT
RainbowRecognizer 3 years ago
This is awesome! I'm a mother of three and I'd love this sometimes and I also would not mind doing it for someone else. Great idea, thanks :o)