- Small business owners and consumers on how fuel shortages are affecting online orders
Having food or other items delivered to your doorstep is not just a luxury or comfort, it is also a matter of convenience. During the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, having groceries delivered to your place of residence was also a matter of safety, not to forget that leaving your house was not permitted when curfew was imposed.
However, today, delivery services have been severely affected by the fuel shortages affecting the country. As consumers, many of us are hesitant to place orders online for delivery given how uncertain everything is. The cost of delivery has also risen, which is affecting both businesses as well as consumers.
Brunch reached out to a small business owner who has had to deal with the hassle of arranging delivery during these times. While wishing to remain anonymous, the small business owner said customers always ask if she is able to deliver, and many are understanding when she says delivery is impossible due to the current fuel crisis.
However, she shared incidents about two customers who begged her to deliver their orders the following day, saying it was urgent. Of the two customers, one travelled by bus to collect the order, while the other dropped the order after they were informed the goods could be brought up to Pettah from Mount Lavinia at a cost of Rs. 1,200.
“I haven’t had complaints about delays. But I have had customers not confirming orders because I am unable to tell them when they will get their order, or how much the courier charge will be,” the small business owner said.
She added that there is also now the extra hassle of having to weigh packages and estimate the delivery cost. “This is not easy when you run a small business with no in-house staff,” she added.
A home-baker informed us that they no longer carry out delivery rounds like they used to. “We used to plan delivery rounds every other week and charged a minimal fee so we don’t burden the customer. Now, we don’t even think of delivery rounds since there is no point given the cost of fuel and also how uncertain things are with fuel shipments,” she said, explaining that they rarely offer pick-up as an option since they are not based in Colombo, where most of their customers are from.
“Even if I can find a cab, transport will cost more than what the customer is paying for their food,” she added.
The home-baker went on to say: “We still accept a few orders, but these are from regular customers who don’t need their order by a specific date. This has helped, since promising delivery on a certain date is not something we can do.”
This has caused a massive drop in orders, she said, but added that she does not rely on her baking business as a source of income, which has been a relief.
Brunch also spoke to Chathurika Liyanarathna to understand how this has affected consumers. Chathurika says that she has never been a fan of shopping, whether it is for groceries or clothes. This made ordering food and other goods online a small luxury she enjoyed. She added that delivery services were of great use during pandemic lockdowns.
“I used to depend on food delivery apps even before the pandemic, especially on the days that I have to work late, I wasn’t feeling well or when my kitchen ran out of certain ingredients and grocery shopping was not possible. Ordering out once or twice a week was part of our lifestyle,” Chathurika said, adding that, despite living in the suburbs, they had some good choices on the two main food delivery apps used in the country.
“I used the same apps for grocery shopping and sometimes even to get prescription drugs from pharmacies. It was very convenient for me that these options were available and that I could count on a service to get these done without having to leave my house. It saved a lot of time for me,” she explained.
However, outlets are now unavailable on these apps most of the time, and even if they are, there are no riders available. This has mostly put a stop to online ordering and food delivery.
Chathurika added: “Getting any chore done is extra difficult these days and the little support we had from these apps is also no longer accessible. But with everything that’s happening, I don’t feel it’s fair to complain about these services not being available, because this can’t even add up to a fraction of the real problems we are facing.”
