Fresh Thyme Market offers new e-commerce options
- Fresh Thyme Market has launched a new e-commerce platform.
- The grocer will offer delivery and in-house pick and pack for pickup orders.
- Grocery delivery has remained popular since the COVID-19 pandemic, though it fell in March.
Fresh Thyme Market has launched a new e-commerce platform that offers grocery pickup and delivery.
According to an April 12 release, the grocery chain’s new e-commerce site will offer groceries for pickup and delivery, priced at the same cost as they would be if a shopper was purchasing groceries in the store. The orders will be picked and packed by Fresh Thyme Market’s staff.
"We are excited to bring a more convenient way of shopping to our loyal and new customers with this e-commerce launch," said Liz Zolcak, president of Fresh Thyme Market, in the release. "We are proud to be able to bring our great in-store shopping experience to life, online. With our new appealing and convenient e-comm experience, we can provide more shoppers with savings without sacrificing quality or freshness."
The grocer has 71 stores across 10 states predominantly in the Midwest, including locations in Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Iowa and Kentucky.
Online grocery orders exploded in popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic, and e-commerce options in grocery have remained popular even as life for consumers in the U.S. has returned to pre-pandemic norms. It’s not all positive news for e-commerce in grocery, however. According to the latest Brick Meets Click and Mercatus survey, published April 11, the U.S. online grocery market posted $8 billion in total sales in March, down 7.6% compared to 2022. Delivery fell by 7.4%, pickup fell by 8.5% and ship-to-home declined by 5.9%, according to the survey.
Third-party companies like Instacart swooped in to assist grocers and retailers with pickup and delivery, though many grocers are more frequently bringing those services in-house, as those companies transition to more of a solution provider role for retailers, Retail Leader Pro reported.
Other grocers to recently update their e-commerce options for consumers include Southeastern Grocers, which this year launched curbside pickup at Winn-Dixie and Harveys stores, and Kroger, which has expanded its delivery presence in areas without physical Kroger stores.