This seems weird to me but who knows!
A couple of weeks ago I needed to get a few more quart canning jars. I was on the Walmart app fixing to order them and Vince said he needed to run to Carthage. Did I want to go? I asked if he minded if we ran by Walmart so I could pick up a couple of cases of jars. No. He didn’t mind.
We went in and the quart jars were $12.97. I told Vince . . I could have sworn they were $11.97 on the app just before we left the house but I hadn’t brought my phone with me. I figured I had looked at the wrong jars online or the price had gone up already but we went ahead and got the two cases. I got home, checked the app and, sure enough, they were $11.97. I assumed the price in Carthage was just $1 more than the price at the Webb City Walmart but I wasn’t going to waste time over $2.
This week, Vince was going to Walmart and I asked him to pick up a case of 4 oz. jars. Those are the ones I like to use for making egg bites. He came back and said “It’s weird that these were $11.97 and that’s the same price as the quart jars.” I said . . What? They’re $7.98 online! I checked the price again and they were 7.98. Because I freeze dry basil, green onions, garlic, lemon grass and other herbs out of the garden and like to vacuum seal them in the 4 oz. jars, I went ahead and ordered 4 cases of those. My options when ordering are curbside pickup, delivery or shipping. Sometimes shipping says 1 day; sometimes shipping says 3 day. There’s no delivery fee and no way to leave a tip for the “shipping” option but 9 times out of 10, when I choose either 1 day or 3 day shipping, within about an hour, sometime delivers the merchandise to the house.
The other day I was outside and I asked the guy . . What about a tip? I hate that you guys are delivering this and there’s no way to add a tip. Can I give you a cash tip? He said “No! We’re paid by Walmart. We do not accept or expect tips from the customer.” He explained that it’s different for them vs. the regular delivery drivers (when I use the “delivery” option). I asked him . . why does it say shipping but yet y’all deliver it? He explained that some things, it’s less expensive for them to deliver from the store than it is to ship Fed Ex. He also told me that one of the items I had ordered wasn’t available at my local WM so he had to drive to another WM and get it from there. That makes no sense to me.
I told him if there was a way I could see what’s available and where it’s coming from, I would change the way I order. I thought . . if they’re boxing this stuff up and shipping it, it doesn’t matter if I place a couple of orders a day . . like Amazon; but if a human is going to bring two orders here, that makes no sense.
He told me that they have things grouped by area. He had nine deliveries to make in our area. I guess it’s cost effective for Walmart but it makes no sense to me.
The four cases of jars I ordered – they came in two separate deliveries. They had to come from two different stores apparently. How can they sell 4 cases of jars for $7.98 each, pay two drivers to come from two different Walmarts to deliver them?
Again . . don’t ask questions . . there’s no rhyme or reason to some things but now I feel weird ordering anything that’s going to be “shipped”.
MRH says
Yes! A couple of weeks i go i experienced this for the first time. We live 1 mile from the walmart and they had what i wanted but since i was at work, i couldnt trust that i would be there to buy it before it disappeared again from the shelves. So i placed the order online and the next thing i knew i was getting notified about a delivery. And here i thougt i would jusy pop down there on my way home that evening! Thanks for the explanation. I too thought i had missed a chance to tip.