Retailers overwhelmed by surge in online orders for essential items
The unprecedented volume of online orders at major grocers and supermarket chains in Ho Chi Minh City due to the public’s concern over COVID-19 has resulted in cancellations and long delays in delivery.
An employee from a supermarket in HCM City delivers goods to customers. (Photo congthuong.vn)
HCM City (VNS/VNA) - The unprecedented volume of online orders at majorgrocers and supermarket chains in Ho Chi Minh City due to thepublic’s concern over COVID-19 has resulted in cancellations and long delays indelivery.
“Icalled the supermarket’s customer hotline for online ordering early in themorning and received a reply … at noon they were out of stock,” said Tran Thi Mai,who lives in Binh Khanh Apartment in Thu Duc City.
Manymajor grocery stores and supermarkets near her apartment were temporarilyclosed due to local cases of infection, making stores that were open morecrowded, she said.
Asit was impossible to order online, she had to shop for groceries at noon toavoid crowds, she said.
NguyenThi Thanh Thao of District 11 ordered fresh vegetables, fruits and food onlinefrom a supermarket near her house, and was told they would be delivered onlythe next day.
Retailerssaid they were racing to add online shopping and ramping up staff forhome delivery services amidst the continuing lockdown and strict socialdistancing requirements, but admitted it was still a tall order since there wasa 300-600 percent spike in online shopping.
Thesales director of an e-commerce platform said the pandemic had accelerated theshift in retailing from offline to online.
Fastdelivery within two to four hours was a vital part of online orders forgroceries and fresh vegetables, fruits and food, but the boom in online grocerywas precluding that, he said.
InHCM City, traditional markets account for 60-70 percent of retail sales ofagricultural produce, food and foodstuffs consumed.
Ninety-threeout of its 234 traditional markets are temporarily closed to combat theoutbreak.
Thecity’s Department of Industry and Trade said the volume of goods delivered tothe three wholesale markets still open in the city was less than 4,600 tonneson July 1, 11 percent down from normal.
Theprices of vegetables, fruits and seafood sold at traditional markets like ThiNghe and Ba Chieu markets in Binh Thanh District and Tan Dinh market inDistrict 1 rose by 5-25 percent compared to a week earlier./.
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An employee from a supermarket in HCM City delivers goods to customers. (Photo congthuong.vn) 
