I had a pick up shop yesterday. received an email reminding me to pick up at the designated time. Arrived 10 minutes after the start of the time period for pick up. Sat there 10 minutes- a man came out saying no one started to pick my order yet- can I come back later. I said no as I lived a bit of a distance away. OK he said that they will work on it- 20 minutes later a girl came out saying it would be 15 minutes more. 20 minutes later the order was brought to my car. Oh wonderful! Checked it at Krogers lot everything was there. Hooray! Got home and the site said ON MY WAY no evidence that I picked up as is usually the case. It did not register that I had picked up. Waited 2 hours. Says "ON MY WAY" . Still nothing- called the store- was on hold with music playing 4 times until the call disconnected. Tried Kroger chat- live operator needed- message said due to high call volume there would be a long wait. Ok so checked the Kroger site again still no receipt. Called the store t2 more times no one picked up this time. Finally I drove to the store and asked to speak with someone as the order they gave me had items which had to be weighed- as well as meat which was an estimated price rather than the actual price. My credit card was charged an estimated amount and listed as pending. Spoke to someone at courtesy they said they would get someone for me. 45 minutes later was told that there was no one there to finalize my receipt. They gave me a print out of the order and said that was all they could do for me. Went home and was quite annoyed. Phone rang and manager of store came on- he said he was able to figure it out and had finalized the receipt. I told him I shopped Friday for 4 X fuel points so did not want the receipt not to be issued. Got a receipt. Did my report. What annoys me more than anything is that the report simply asked time to come to car as well as description of associate, color of bags used and whether there was anything missed or given to me by mistake. There is no place to enter a narrative other an 100 characters at end of the report if you do not have a receipt. As there was no one at the store who knew how to make receipts- I wonder if everyone who picked up was not charged??? Yes this was a very unusual situation BUT Kroger should know of what happened- the report is a waste of my time and effort. As I was waiting to speak to someone I saw an instore report hanging in the employee area where I was waiting- so they do take reports seriously- this report was totally a waste of time as it did not relate all the grief I went through. Several of my neighbors are no longer shopping at Krogers for reasons such as this- does Kroger want to know why? I think not- they ask stupid questions such as whether the associate had jewelry glasses or a tattoo. In the meantime service stinks. Rant over!

@Fatlady wrote:

received an email reminding me to pick up at the designated time.

Well, that does sound like a mess. Without having any Kroger emails in front of me to refer to - did this email say your order was ready for pickup? Or was it just a reminder that you had a pickup scheduled for that day?

It said remember to pick up your order today- gave the time and location. That is what usually is sent out on the day of a pick up.

@Fatlady wrote:

It said remember to pick up your order today- gave the time and location. That is what usually is sent out on the day of a pick up.

That is an automated email. It has absolutely nothing to do with the state of organization, or disorganization at the actual store. I get an automated email and text message confirming my pick up order. Then, I get a text message, if necessary, telling me about substitutions. And when my order is ready for pick up, even if it's before my pick up time, I get a text message saying that my order is complete and ready for pick up. I still don't go to pick it up until my scheduled time or later, but I have confirmation that my order is ready. If I haven't received a confirmation that my order is ready when my pick up time has come (and sometimes gone), I will call the store and ask for the status before I go.

Usually the store calls me before my pick up time starts if there is a problem and they need to delay my pick up time. Just about a month ago I got a phone call from a manager asking me to pick up my order 2 hours late, and then I got a text saying that my order was ready for pick up about 10 minutes later, and still inside the pick up window. I was running late anyway, so it wasn't a big deal to be 2 hours late, so that's what I did anyway.

Too bad we can't do hourly billing for our fees...

I have had a super rough month of Kroger shops. Almost every order was no prepared on time, which is REALLY important for my very tight schedule. I started ordering them for earlier in the day. They also had one that said delayed and never sent the notification that it was ready. They blamed the system on that one.
I can tell that every issue is for short staffing issues. I did leave the smallest blurb explaining delays, etc.
However, I am 99.9% sure that all orders settle over night. So I didn't get a receipt for an order and I waited til morning to submit.

The above stated situations and the desire to see what I am purchasing are two reasons why I have and will continue to refrain from the pick-up shops.

@Morledzep wrote:

@Fatlady wrote:

That is an automated email. It has absolutely nothing to do with the state of organization, or disorganization at the actual store. I get an automated email and text message confirming my pick up order. Then, I get a text message, if necessary, telling me about substitutions. And when my order is ready for pick up, even if it's before my pick up time, I get a text message saying that my order is complete and ready for pick up. I still don't go to pick it up until my scheduled time or later, but I have confirmation that my order is ready. If I haven't received a confirmation that my order is ready when my pick up time has come (and sometimes gone), I will call the store and ask for the status before I go.
.

We don't have a Kroger here but I do WM pick ups a-lot.. My Pick ups work the same way but I never get any substitutions.

If I order something and they don't have it stock, I will receive a text and email a couple of hours before my pick up saying XXXX is out of stock or something to that effect and that you will not be charge for those items., We will credit your account for those items with in 3 to 5 days (depending on your bank)

There was one time I was late picking up my order.. I selected a pick up time between 12 pm and 1 pm but by
3 :30 PM they were calling asking where I was... Even though I received a text message saying it was ready.

I told them that I am sorry but I got tied up doing something else and I said I will be there in about 30 minutes..

When I got there, I told the person that brought my stuff out that I was sorry I was late and he said don't worry about it

I do not do these shops but there have been so many times when I have done a report and felt there were many more important things they should know about than the ones they ask us to report on. I think every report should have a comment box where we can report unusual occurrences and also usual occurrences that are annoying or inefficient or in some was off putting for their customers.

" whether there was anything missed " why yes the actual receipt showing the final price was missing!

The receipt will settle overnight. If this happens in the future just send the screenshot of your order and let the scheduler know. They'll have you send in your receipt after you receive it.

LIke others, I tend to order for a pickup window earlier than when I plan on arriving. My only issue with an order not being ready at all was at a Target.

Did you click "on my way" before you drove there?

Did you click "I am here" when you parked?

I have never had an issue with Kroger or Target pick-up. I use the all the time in real life.
I did one in BFE last week. Took the gal 1:08 to bring it to my car. It was 100 F that day. Best service ever. If I lived in BFE, I'd never set foot in the store. Just bring it out for me.

It's not just one store. I have used this service in no less than 5 states.

When I used to these shops, on some locations, I did a combination of things that Morledzep and Isaiah4031a had mentioned. I don't recommend it because it does go against the intent and purpose of the shop. I would schedule it for earlier, and then wait for confirmation that it was ready to pick-up. If I couldn't get there in time, I would go towards the end. But sometimes it's inconvenient for the pick-up associate. I'm not sure if they can't leave until the last order for the day is picked-up, where I received some calls that my order was ready like Isaiah4031a received. If I picked up the last time slot, sometimes they would also call me a lot earlier that my order was ready.

One time where there was a significant delay because the location was short-staffed and backed up on orders, the scheduler agreed and told me not to waste my time.

In my area, some Walmart locations are not worth the trouble. Target is pretty accurate and efficient. Most Kroger in my area are good. Over the years, it has gotten better and better.

Yes did both!

Yes hit on my way 10 minutes before arriving. then I am here when I arrived. The store was just totally screwed up- today I went to another Kroger for my son's order- it was NOT A SHOP and the service was excellent- go figure

There was one store that was always a day late in getting the order finalized. It would always make me anxious since the report had to be delayed because of the receipt issue. Later, I called them to complain and the manager got annoyed because he didn't realize the employee would leave everything to be finalized until the next day. I chalk it up to poor training.

Like Shopperbob, I need way more control over my groceries than to deal with all that silliness. I can pick the items I want (or not, if they're out of stock) and get out of there. Done. I will not put myself at the mercy of apps, wonky systems and careless clerks. That's way too much stress. And negotiate over substitutions? Nah, I'm not looking for a pen pal. Plus, the whole ordering and communication process, to me, is wasted time. I've come to realize that at my age I have much less time left so wasting it is not practical. I'd rather watch TV or read. Alone.

Unless the fee is, like $200 or so, of course.

@sestrahelena wrote:

I've come to realize that at my age I have much less time left so wasting it is not practical.

You never know, you may live to 100!

But for the pick-up orders, I found that you can (what's the nice way to say this?) idiotmistake-proof the order by selecting certain items, for example, toilet paper. And throw in some perishable items.

Back then, it was advantageous to do multiple types of shops on the same trip. And some locations are good about the pick-up orders. Not sure what the rules are these days, but interested to hear about @melg experiences.

@Fatlady wrote:

Yes hit on my way 10 minutes before arriving. then I am here when I arrived. The store was just totally screwed up- today I went to another Kroger for my son's order- it was NOT A SHOP and the service was excellent- go figure

Well, that sucks. Sorry to hear it was so bad.

@Okie wrote:

@sestrahelena wrote:

I've come to realize that at my age I have much less time left so wasting it is not practical.

You never know, you may live to 100!

Actually, I do know. I have a deadline. Yes, pun intended.

Ugh, what a hassle. I don't normally do these shops because they're a bit out of my area but I received an email for one that wasn't too far and thought about doing it. I think I'll skip it now.

I have been doing these for the past three years and can count the glitches on one hand for Kroger. A few have been "system down" errors which often coincide with "your order isn't ready". A few have been missing or poor quality produce items. IMO the produce pickers have gotten better and I avoid bagged produce. I save anything that bruises easily for the required instore shops.

Missing and bad items I use the online refund option. Out of stocks are another issue that can reduce your reimbursement (pickup in the afternoon if you are going for a big ticket item). My yogurt is often a gamble.

I don't travel out of my way since there are so many stores near me, but I realize this isn't true for everyone.

I've had more issues with the competitor pickups than with Kroger. One store (Vons) gave me someone else's order for half of mine!!

In the past, my experience has been similar. I remember one day, maybe early this year, where their system was down at all stores. I had four pick-up orders that day, but they issued a future credit for each order in addition to fulfilling my order later during the day. Smaller items, you can request a refund, and they let you keep it.

But everyone has their preferences.

Maybe one day I will able to get reinstated!

What do you mean if you will get reinstated?

I just did a Target shop and the associate gave another customer part of my order. That's what happens when they get ambitious and try to hand out several orders all at once.

@Okie wrote:

In the past, my experience has been similar. I remember one day, maybe early this year, where their system was down at all stores. I had four pick-up orders that day, but they issued a future credit for each order in addition to fulfilling my order later during the day. Smaller items, you can request a refund, and they let you keep it.

But everyone has their preferences.

Maybe one day I will able to get reinstated!

My bad, reinstated was the wrong word, but maybe one day I will be eligible to self-assign Kroger shops again. Earlier this year, I got locked out from self-assigning Kroger shops. I believe it was due to doing too many pick-up shops and not enough in-store shops to maintain a 1:1 ratio.

I don't know for sure and others at the MSC can't confirm either, but I believe it was so disproportionate that I don't think this is going to remedy itself anytime soon. I was told that this is a result of the system and I would have to wait it out. As a result, I am in Kroger purgatory!

Edited to add: My fault though for not remembering what my scheduler had sent out.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/27/2024 04:49AM by Okie.

Okie, if it's just an imbalance or a rotation thing you'll be clear and reset in February. I know that kinda sucks right now..

Ah thanks! That's better than I had anticipated.

I think this was good on a different level. It made me spend less on groceries and take a much needed break from these shops. But I do miss those old bonuses with the previous MSC.