Relay Foods Offers Free Grocery Delivery
Online grocer Relay Foods has introduced the “Drop Spots” program to enable Washington, D.C.-area apartment buildings to provide residents with free concierge grocery delivery.
The program provides real estate management groups with a cost-free way to help residents bypass the difficulties of grocery shopping in the nation’s capital by offering on-site delivery. Relay’s Drop Spots aim to save residents from time-consuming, stressful trips to far-flung grocery stores, without overextending apartment staffs.
“In D.C., we all know that grocery shopping can be rough,” said Graham Evans, VP of new markets and D.C. city manager at Charlottesville, Va.-based Relay, which has been serving the area since summer 2012. “After a long, stressful day, no one wants to fight traffic to get to and from a grocery store or haul shopping bags on the metro. So, we’re partnering with forward-thinking apartment buildings to bring fresh, local food and groceries directly to residents.”
Relay provides a comprehensive selection of local foods and grocery essentials online and delivers orders to pickup locations or customers’ homes. Under the new program, the company and participating apartment buildings establish a regular delivery schedule, with delivery teams ensuring that ordered groceries reach the Drop Spot by 4:00 p.m. Delivery schedules begin at one drop per week and can be increased to multiple days per week, according to residents’ needs.
Six apartment buildings took part in the pilot program including Archstone 1st+M, whose community manager, Larry Brown was enthusiastic about the service. “Relay Foods was a perfect fit,” he said. “They worked with us to make sure this was a seamless process for residents. We also worked together to make sure this wouldn’t overtax our front desk staff, who process thousands of deliveries a week. Relay handles the hard labor, and our staff simply record what was dropped off.”
Brown added that Relay introduced the Drop Spots program with a live cooking demonstration in the building’s common kitchen, attracting more than 40 residents. An already existing designated delivery room with two industrial fridges allows the building staff to store the weekly groceries delivered by Relay Foods.
Launched in 2009, Relay brings together more than 100 unique merchants, vendors and stores that partner with the company as an alternative distribution channel to expand the availability of their products.