Short Stop Market Diversifies With Delivery

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho — Neighborhood convenience store Short Stop Market will soon offer grocery delivery to Idaho Falls residents, according to a Post Register report. The independent store, located at 525 W. Elva St., plans to launch the service Oct. 1.

"We're not the first to deliver groceries, but we may be the first neighborhood market to do so," said General Manager Jason Anderson, who noted that approximately a third of the store's customers travel to it on foot, and that some members of the community are less mobile due to age, disability or lack of transportation.

"We figured that it would be a great service to be able to deliver groceries and convenience store items to people who don't have the time, can't or … don't want to go out to pick up those items, especially as the weather turns colder and the roads get more treacherous," he continued. 

Initially, the service will be available from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Short Stop Market's business hours are from 7 a.m. to midnight Monday through Saturday, and 8 a.m. to midnight on Sundays. Customers will pay a fee for delivery unless they place an order worth $45 or more.

Customers must live within a 3.5-mile radius of the store to use the delivery service. The specific fee they pay will be based on their distance from the store and the number of items ordered, but the minimum order amount for delivery will be set at $10.

Anderson and his wife Jennifer plan to market the delivery service through social media and community outreach, according to the report. The service will have a separate phone number. A website and eventual mobile app for the store are also in the works.

Short Stop Market's grocery offerings include meat, frozen food and some produce, along with beer, wine and other beverages.