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King Kullen boosts online grocery functionality

Platform upgrade helps New York-area chain grow e-commerce service

Russell Redman

July 30, 2018

2 Min Read
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Regional grocer King Kullen is expanding its online grocery retail and media capabilities.

The Bethpage, N.Y.-based chain has begun an upgrade of its MyWebGrocer e-commerce platform. Plans call for the updates to be implemented in phases over the rest of the year, with the rollout expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2019.

New online shopping features will include a unified cart and list capability. That will enable customers to seamlessly build lists when accessing King Kullen’s graphical weekly ad, planning meals using the retailer’s archive of recipes and shopping via the chain’s online grocery service.

King Kullen expects the added functionality — along with personalized offers, merchandising and product discovery through sponsored listings — to bolster customer loyalty and conversion, since it will be easier for shoppers to add new and more relevant items to their online shopping cart.

“Today, our customers expect speed and convenience without having to sacrifice the quality of service we provide. Upgrading our MyWebGrocer technology platform will allow us to continue to deliver a world-class customer experience better than any other grocer on Long Island,” said Joseph Brown, senior vice president and chief merchandising officer at King Kullen.

Meanwhile, on the back end, order management and picking software upgrades are slated to boost online order fulfillment rates and lessen the distance that staff must walk when filling orders.

“By eliminating inefficiencies, we’re helping level the grocery delivery playing field to enable great independent grocers like King Kullen to compete with huge chains and new entrants like Amazon,” explained Barry Clogan, president of retail Ssolutions for MyWebGrocer. “Decreasing picking times and accelerating order fulfillment has tremendous positive impact for retailers. When you can fill more orders per hour, you can scale customer base and attract and retain more customers.”

The upgraded platform stands to help King Kullen serve a growing base of online grocery shoppers. Earlier this year, the grocer expanded coverage of its Shop OnLine same-day grocery delivery service to include a half-dozen additional communities in Long Island’s Suffolk County. The service already served all of Nassau County, parts of Queens and much of Suffolk.

Shop OnLine offers online grocery delivery and pickup service to about 120 towns through King Kullen’s Bay Shore, Bridgehampton, Fire Island, Garden City Park and Island Park locations. Pickup is available only at those five outlets.

Orders are picked by trained personal shoppers, who will call customers with any questions or if order substitutions are needed. Shoppers can receive their groceries at their home or office in as soon as two hours. The minimum order size is $50, and delivery fees range from $6 to $11.99, depending on the order amount. Click-and-collect service costs $6.

Overall, King Kullen operates 32 stores and five Wild by Nature organic/natural supermarkets across Long Island.

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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