Sam’s Club joins curbside pickup clique
Sam’s Club is rolling out a curbside pickup service nationwide.
The warehouse club retailer, a subsidiary of Walmart, expects to offer a contact-free, order-online-and-delivery-to-car shopping experience at all 597 stores by the end of June. Sam’s Club has been piloting curbside pickup at 16 stores and reports positive results.
The service will be a standard free offering for Plus-level members and available free for a limited time to customers with other levels of membership. After setting up an account, customers place orders via the Sam’s Club app or e-commerce site. Products marked “Pick up in Club” are eligible.
Customers will then complete an online shopping list, select a pickup time and checkout, with same-day pickup available. Upon arrival to the store, members will use one of the designated pickup spots, and an associate will load items into their cars.
Plus members will be able to schedule curbside pickup orders between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m., Monday to Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays. Non-Plus members pickup times will be limited and only available 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.., Monday to Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays. Customers who are interested in adding this free service can upgrade to a Plus membership at any time.
Sam’s Club will also continue to offer its concierge service for seniors and high-risk shoppers every Tuesday and Thursday from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., and “Hero Hours” for frontline workers every Sunday from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m., until further notice.
“Sam’s Club members have been integrating technology into their shopping habits for a while with scan & go, samsclub.com and in-club pickup,” said Lance de la Rosa, COO, Sam’s Club. “As we continue to innovate to make the shopping experience better and faster for our members, we’re proud to be able to quickly implement and offer curbside pickup across the country, particularly during a time when they are searching for alternative ways to shop.”
Curbside pickup is becoming an increasingly popular offering among warehouse club, grocery, and CPG retailers as customers seek contactless shopping options during the COVID-19 pandemic. Costco (for prescription medications), Aldi, Hy-Vee, Cumberland Farms, and Winkler Wholesale Grocers have all recently introduced or expanded curbside programs.