Howdy, I'm a new department manager for HEB in curbside. Looking for feedback from the best of yall. Listening to any and all suggestions or thoughts on the current process and how you think it could be better
HEB Curbside Suggestions
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Last: 19 days ago by 62strat
It's done really well. Only complaint is how long it can take to wait there sometimes.
It would help at some stores if the parking was open except during curbside hours.
It would help at some stores if the parking was open except during curbside hours.
As a non curbside customer, the curbside people that do the shopping have are a real drag on the regular customer experience. they're oblivious to traffic flow in the aisles, they leave the carts unattended blocking either walkways or products. Each one of those carts is the equivalent of 5 people checking ripeness of the avocados. Wonder if there's a way y'all could have a centralized facility or warehouse for them to "shop" at and leave the regular customers a more traditional and efficient experience. I get it's good business for y'all but geez...
It's called microfulfillment and you can fulfill primarily from storage in the back or a standard stocked area. Largest issue with it in a grocery store is the strong tendency towards first in, first out to avoid spoilage.rononeill said:
As a non curbside customer, the curbside people that do the shopping have are a real drag on the regular customer experience. they're oblivious to traffic flow in the aisles, they leave the carts unattended blocking either walkways or products. Each one of those carts is the equivalent of 5 people checking ripeness of the avocados. Wonder if there's a way y'all could have a centralized facility or warehouse for them to "shop" at and leave the regular customers a more traditional and efficient experience. I get it's good business for y'all but geez...
Could easily do that with dry or frozen goods, but it doesn't work especially well with fresh items. Plus you have all the added costs and complexity of managing two inventory pools. The best process for fresh items is to pick them during down times. But that means restricting ordering times and without coolers, etc in the back, restricting pick up times as well.
A far easier solution might be a smaller cart and better training.
rononeill said:
As a non curbside customer, the curbside people that do the shopping have are a real drag on the regular customer experience. they're oblivious to traffic flow in the aisles, they leave the carts unattended blocking either walkways or products. Each one of those carts is the equivalent of 5 people checking ripeness of the avocados. Wonder if there's a way y'all could have a centralized facility or warehouse for them to "shop" at and leave the regular customers a more traditional and efficient experience. I get it's good business for y'all but geez...
Amen brother.
Worst thing that came from COVID was curbside pick up.
Somehow we made lazy Americans lazier.
Too many items are not available for curbside ordering. It shouldn't be that technically difficult to link up in store inventory to online ordering availability , but apparently it is.
Agree with the comments about in store experience suffering as a result of curbside order picking. It sometimes feels like I am at an Amazon fulfillment center trying to do my shopping all because Amazon won't list everything available for online ordering - except that in reality, they do.
And at smaller stores where curbside is done in the regular parking lot, the process is slow and inefficient compared to at bigger and newer stores where it is done on the side. Not sure retrofitting that will be viable in the short term for you but it would be as if Chick Fil A was trying to run their new post-Covid drive through setup without remodeling parking lot traffic flow or by buying an old sonic and trying to run it out of that model. Terrible efficiency and slow.
Agree with the comments about in store experience suffering as a result of curbside order picking. It sometimes feels like I am at an Amazon fulfillment center trying to do my shopping all because Amazon won't list everything available for online ordering - except that in reality, they do.
And at smaller stores where curbside is done in the regular parking lot, the process is slow and inefficient compared to at bigger and newer stores where it is done on the side. Not sure retrofitting that will be viable in the short term for you but it would be as if Chick Fil A was trying to run their new post-Covid drive through setup without remodeling parking lot traffic flow or by buying an old sonic and trying to run it out of that model. Terrible efficiency and slow.
Not to mention all the Gwagon driving Alo wearing coogs that don't have to get stuff from the bottom shelf anymore are scrolling Instagram in the parking lot vs doing their good work inside.
Thank you! A lot of this is known by heb and we're coaching shoppers on better ways to park and go with the flow so to speak.
Some stores use a distribution center to completely fill some orders for curbside! My store does and I'm sure more will in the coming years
Some stores use a distribution center to completely fill some orders for curbside! My store does and I'm sure more will in the coming years
I won't do curbside anymore. The last 3 times in a row. I waited longer for curbside to bring my groceries than it would have taken to go shopping. That's simply ridiculous.
As I live alone, I am grateful for both curbside and delivery. I used both while recovering from surgery. Both went well and on time.
I don't do curbside. Do you charge a fee? If not I suspect HEB loses money having the service.
I'm 95% in store and 5% curbside. I would lean more curbside if they didn't choose rotten produce and stale bread. And Sunday morning curbside carts ruin my shopping 10x out of 10. Also why are you stocking shelves Sunday morning at 10am HEB plus in NB?? If I go alone I'm screwed, if Mr. Diesel goes he stays at the end of the crowded aisles and I run down and grab all the stuff by hand and meet him back to drop into the cart. It shouldn't be that crowded with stockers, curbside, and customers. I love hunting season because Cuero HEB is like a freaking picnic compared to any NB store.
Good feedback for me. Wait time is something that is heavily emphasized right now.
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Yep, those big ass carts blocking the aisle are my biggest gripe.
Second is restocking on Sunday morning. That should be done before 0800. Not at 1030.
Finally, bring back the cookies for kids. Covid took that away and yall just conveniently forgot to bring it back.
Thanks for creating this thread. HEB is still a far superior shopping experience to Kroger or geriatric Randalls.
Second is restocking on Sunday morning. That should be done before 0800. Not at 1030.
Finally, bring back the cookies for kids. Covid took that away and yall just conveniently forgot to bring it back.
Thanks for creating this thread. HEB is still a far superior shopping experience to Kroger or geriatric Randalls.
COVID was a great excuse to temporarily cut things then it lasted longer than anyone thought, so it allowed companies to memory hole the prior experience.
Chuy's was never the greatest thing. But it was good for the price. They cut the menu by 3/4 during COVID. Then just never brought the real menu back again.
Chuy's was never the greatest thing. But it was good for the price. They cut the menu by 3/4 during COVID. Then just never brought the real menu back again.
What happened to the Hatch Chili Lime cookies? I used to buy a dozen boxes each year, this year I found 2 stashed behind a box of Saltines.
Your staff needs to learn what is a substitution. Hot tamales is not a substitute for tamales. Also, if I wanted your brand of an item, I would have picked it. Several times I have gone into the store after getting my curbside to see the actual items that I wanted on the shelf. I have tried turning off substitutions but when you do they just leave items out that they were too lazy to either find or forgot when they were in that area of the store.
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Maybe ditch the big red carts and make your pickers only carry hand baskets. It will take more time and more steps, but I don't care about that. I only care about getting them out of my way.
We need a Hooter's version of curbside. No need to thank me for your inevitable promotion.
We stopped using because 25% or more of every produce item was missing in every order. We tried everything but produce, and the substitutions were crazy, like an $80 bottle of wine substituted for a $20 bottle of wine. In maybe a dozen attempts, they never got a single order completely correct. (Village at Westlake HEB.) We have to shop at Randalls and Central Market to get groceries since they opened the Lake Austin store and lowered the Westlake village store to the level of the Lake Austin store. Our HEB has been going downhill for a long time. Many items went Central Market years ago. They can't keep items stocked on the shelves. It's been a rough decade or two at our HEB.
Question about HEB. Employee's can get stock now correct? Is that open to part time employees? Is there a cap on what you can get in stock vs pay?
Ragoo said:
I don't do curbside. Do you charge a fee? If not I suspect HEB loses money having the service.
The service itself is free (no delivery or shopping charge), depending on what time of day and how fast you want your groceries. For example, right now, if I wanted pick up at my store between 11-1, it would be a $7.95 charge, $4.95 between noon and 130, and free after 130 pm.
But the items are all about 3% more expensive. That's the real price of the service.
I learned long ago not to ever use curbside if I need produce. The shoppers have a knack for picking the worst produce in the bins.
On a side note - what's been the supply issue lately with the Mootopia fat free milk? There have been shortages the last few months - completely sold out at all 4 stores in my area on a few separate occasions. It's only been the fat free version. I can sub Fair Life, I'm just curious what the problem is since it seems to be recurring.
flashplayer said:
but it would be as if Chick Fil A was trying to run their new post-Covid drive through setup without remodeling parking lot traffic flow or by buying an old sonic and trying to run it out of that model. Terrible efficiency and slow.
Oddly enough a Chick Fil A where I lived last year temporarily ran ops out of an old Sonic while they re-did their parking lot.
What about some kind of messaging feature within the HEB app or even opting into text messaging to possibly troubleshoot order issues or substitutes real time as the shopper is collecting items?
Review what nonperishable items are most often ordered for curbside and have an area set aside for them so whoever is pulling orders can get those most common items in one spot. Think mini-store within your store. Should reduce order pulling time and keep them on the floor less and more out of the way.
Go read The Toyota Way and consider how you can apply those lessons to your curbside ops
Go read The Toyota Way and consider how you can apply those lessons to your curbside ops
DallasAggie89 said:rononeill said:
As a non curbside customer, the curbside people that do the shopping have are a real drag on the regular customer experience. they're oblivious to traffic flow in the aisles, they leave the carts unattended blocking either walkways or products. Each one of those carts is the equivalent of 5 people checking ripeness of the avocados. Wonder if there's a way y'all could have a centralized facility or warehouse for them to "shop" at and leave the regular customers a more traditional and efficient experience. I get it's good business for y'all but geez...
Amen brother.
Worst thing that came from COVID was curbside pick up.
Somehow we made lazy Americans lazier.
In the old days grocery shopping was all pickup and delivery. Piggly Wiggly was the first chain offering an innovative way to save money by having the customers grab their own groceries off the shelf. It caught on and pickup and delivery services faded out until Covid resurrected the practice.
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Yes you can. You have to be with the company for a certain amount of time and also meet a minimum threshold of hours
Thank you for the suggestions and I will most definitely look into the read. As far as non perishable stuff goes, it's a good idea until you see the inside of a curbside department. There is no space. Especially in stores that were built before curbside was a thing. To remedy this, Electronic fulfillment centers or EFC, tries to deliver most items on all orders before a certain time threshold. Including produce save for some really fragile items. Not all stores have this yet bc the department doesn't have space but the ones that do make a big difference
For the shortage, it's not just heb but all other brands as well, fair life, and others. Don't know for sure but I assume it's something to do with the farms.
For the produce, heb knows this and at my store I'm confident enough to let my partners pick my produce, this comes from a chef as well. I take a lot of pride in coaching them.
For the produce, heb knows this and at my store I'm confident enough to let my partners pick my produce, this comes from a chef as well. I take a lot of pride in coaching them.
10andBOUNCE said:
What about some kind of messaging feature within the HEB app or even opting into text messaging to possibly troubleshoot order issues or substitutes real time as the shopper is collecting items?
It's a good idea but that would mess up a lot of shoppers if they're waiting on a text they may or might not get a response from the customer for. That's why the notes are there. Also in general to respond to all comments about the subs and shorts, that's a reflection mainly on the departments, not curbside. Curbside can only do so much in those instances if for say meat market doesn't have ground chuck. So constant communication between all the departments and curbside is essential especially at bigger curbsides where it accounts for 20-25% of the total volume of sales in that store
rononeill said:
As a non curbside customer, the curbside people that do the shopping have are a real drag on the regular customer experience. they're oblivious to traffic flow in the aisles, they leave the carts unattended blocking either walkways or products. Each one of those carts is the equivalent of 5 people checking ripeness of the avocados. Wonder if there's a way y'all could have a centralized facility or warehouse for them to "shop" at and leave the regular customers a more traditional and efficient experience. I get it's good business for y'all but geez...
Nailed it. Those carts are like navigating around a semi truck. And when you take the cart plus the picker they totally congest the lanes. And they have a job to do so they are not getting out of shoppers way or anything along those lines…
When my wife or sister order HEB curbside they never have problems.
Every time I do I have to return something, only done it twice though
- 1st - Celery that was rotten
- 2nd - Frozen pizza crust that had a damaged box and damaged inside wrapper
Those would be my complaints, the HEB made it right I just had to make a trip back for the pizza crust and file a trip to sprouts for more celery and a compliant online for the celery and they refunded my money.
Maybe more quality control on the pickers. But I don't have a large sample size, overall good experience.
Every time I do I have to return something, only done it twice though
- 1st - Celery that was rotten
- 2nd - Frozen pizza crust that had a damaged box and damaged inside wrapper
Those would be my complaints, the HEB made it right I just had to make a trip back for the pizza crust and file a trip to sprouts for more celery and a compliant online for the celery and they refunded my money.
Maybe more quality control on the pickers. But I don't have a large sample size, overall good experience.
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I don't have any suggestions ... just wanted to say that I enjoy Curbside and feel like it's a good value. I rarely go in the store any more.
I click "don't substitute" on most items and I leave notes for produce and perishables about what I'm looking for. Every now and then, I am disappointed that I get a close-to-expiration item but the vast majority of the time I'm pleased. Wait times are usually pretty good, too, but I try and avoid obvious pickup times.
Also, the folks who bring the groceries are always pleasant, which is a rarity these days.
I click "don't substitute" on most items and I leave notes for produce and perishables about what I'm looking for. Every now and then, I am disappointed that I get a close-to-expiration item but the vast majority of the time I'm pleased. Wait times are usually pretty good, too, but I try and avoid obvious pickup times.
Also, the folks who bring the groceries are always pleasant, which is a rarity these days.
rononeill said:
As a non curbside customer, the curbside people that do the shopping have are a real drag on the regular customer experience. they're oblivious to traffic flow in the aisles, they leave the carts unattended blocking either walkways or products. Each one of those carts is the equivalent of 5 people checking ripeness of the avocados. Wonder if there's a way y'all could have a centralized facility or warehouse for them to "shop" at and leave the regular customers a more traditional and efficient experience. I get it's good business for y'all but geez...
The indifference from curbside workers to in-store customers is shocking.
They'll park that giant cart in the middle of the aisle. Two or three people stalled on either side of them. It wouldn't be that big of deal except they're grabbing 19 different cereals for 10 customers at once. I no longer wait for them. I immediately move their cart out of the way. I always get a dirty look from them and high fives from other customers.
When they deliver to parked cars, they blindly cross the road. And just fly out of the store. EVERY TIME. Very similar to driving on A&M campus. If you aren't paying attention, you'll squish one of them. Sooner or later, one of them is going to be killed or severely injured.
My wife mostly does it but you can add but not cancel something correct?
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