For a week now, local retailers have been able to offer goods via Click & Collect: the customer orders and picks up their purchase.
In the district, the dealers actually sell more.
District
- When Stephanie Jennerwein puts together an outfit for customers by video call in her fashion store in Holzkirchen, she estimates the right size on the mobile phone screen.
“I'm good at that,” says the owner and laughs.
“I now have experience.” During the lockdown last spring and before Christmas, Jennerwein brought people to the business from home via Whatsapp or Facetime.
Now that the Free State also allows local retailers a pick-up service (we reported), customers can take the orders directly in the store.
The so-called Click & Collect has been running for a week.
We asked randomly in three industries how the offer was being accepted.
Fashion
Up until a week ago Jennerwein delivered the ordered goods in the evening.
She continues to offer this delivery service and customers like to use it, but the bottom line is that she sells more because of Click & Collect.
"There are now around 30 percent more people calling," estimates the business owner.
“With the attention paid to Click & Collect, the idea of ordering on-site got more talked about.” Customers can exchange the goods and only pay by invoice when everything fits.
Apparently more people have noticed that now.
Jennerwein is not afraid of long lines.
From 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., she and an employee give appointments for advice on outfits every hour, especially to regular customers.
No more than two orders in 60 minutes.
"If more customers come, that would also be expandable," says Jennerwein.
"But the rush is not yet like that." Distance and hygiene are not a problem.
Sales sooner.
Despite Click & Collect, Jennerwein “cannot begin to cover” its costs.
But she accepts that.
“We book it under customer service.
We want to retain people in the long term. "
Flowers
Also in Désireé Schuster's flower shop Die BergBlume in Tegernsee, customers have been picking up pre-ordered bouquets since last Monday.
The owner estimates that she receives 25 jobs per week.
In addition, she sells her containers in shops or has them delivered by taxis with which she has agreed courier prices.
"So that the drivers also benefit from it."
What Schuster is pleased about: “I feel the cohesion.” People prefer to buy from her than from the supermarket or online florist.
“The Tegernsee Valley wants to support us.
People tell us: 'We want you to stay.' "
Schuster used to get as many orders as she received to pick up in the past week in one day.
Time will tell whether it's worth it.
But at the moment she is less about profit.
She doesn't want to lose contact with customers.
“We just have to make it through the pandemic now.
Hopefully things will soon continue as normal. "
But Schuster still has to adapt to the circumstances: So that the flowers in the warehouse do not wither, she concentrates on the weekend business.
Customers order until Monday evening and pick them up on Thursday.
This makes planning easier for Schuster: Because of Corona, wholesalers are also facing delivery problems.
She can't buy 20 red roses overnight, but she can't keep them in stock in the uncertain time either.
The pandemic is forcing them to focus.
But Schuster makes exceptions for special occasions.
With a laugh she says: "There are also birthdays on Wednesdays."
Cellular
Christian Höing sells cell phones, mobile devices and accessories in the ch-mobilediscount in Miesbach almost like in normal business.
Since he opened his shop twelve years ago, he has built trust with his regular customers.
They are now helping him through the pandemic.
A few casual customers also buy from him, but they are the minority.
“The good thing about our industry is that advice is important,” says Höing.
His customers trusted him and would rather get their devices and contracts from him than from Amazon.
So they get advice on the phone and pick up their devices at the pick-up window in their shop at different times.
Open the window, take out the device, everything is done.
Höing estimates that he serves ten to 15 customers a day.
He is satisfied with that.
“Not much has changed for us,” he says.
"Except that the customers can no longer come in, everything is the same."
