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Tops set to debut curbside pickup

Upstate N.Y. grocery chain also unveils TopsOrganics.com

Russell Redman

October 5, 2018

2 Min Read
Supermarket News logo in a gray background | Supermarket News

Tops Friendly Markets is building on its rollout of Instacart online grocery delivery with the launch of a click-and-collect service this weekend.

Called Tops Grocery Pick Up, the program is scheduled to kick off on Sunday, Oct. 7, at stores in Hamburg, Williamsville and Tonawanda, N.Y., the regional grocer said. That service also will be powered by Instacart.

To use the pickup service, Tops customers order their groceries at the chain’s branded Instacart website (TopsMarkets.com/Instacart), choose a pickup time period at one of the three Tops stores offering the service, and checkout online. Instacart personal shoppers then pick and bag their order and prepare it for pickup.

Once their order is ready, shoppers will receive a text with pickup instructions, which include a designated Tops Grocery Pick Up parking spot. When arriving at the selected location, shoppers text “here” to inform Tops, and a store associate will bring their grocery order to their vehicle.

“This is yet another exciting expansion in Tops Pickup and Delivery services,” Jill Sirica, manager of digital marketing for Williamsville, N.Y.-based Tops Friendly Markets, said in a statement. “We strive to continue to make our consumer experience easier and more convenient, and we are excited to bring this next evolution of service to our customers.”

Related:Tops brings Instacart delivery to more stores

In mid-June, Tops announced what it called its largest expansion with Instacart same-day delivery, bringing the service to 125 of its 169 supermarkets, or nearly three-quarters of its stores, which are located in New York, northern Pennsylvania and Vermont. The move marked the retailer’s fifth expansion with Instacart since introducing the service in the fall of 2017.

Tops noted that e-grocery shoppers — besides being able to order the same fresh meat, seafood and produce selections they find in-store — will see a new feature: a natural and organic online grocery store, dubbed TopsOrganics.com.

The site offers thousands of certified organic, gluten-free and minimally processed products, including national brands and Tops’ Full Circle organics private label. Tops said the new e-store enables customers to find natural, organic and better-for-you in one place.

In support of the Tops Grocery Pick Up launch, Tops and Instacart are offering customers $15 off their first order.

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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