Kroger Rolls Out Contactless Payment Option With Kroger Pay

With a new feature that takes away the need to use a debit or credit card, Kroger has rolled out its Kroger Pay contactless payment option. The function lets shoppers connect their payment information to their loyalty account at the grocery chain via an app and then use a quick-response (QR) code for payment through self-checkouts or at checkouts, WHSV reported.

Kroger also said it has brought almost 3,800 new workers on board as of March 22 to satisfy heightened demand due to the coronavirus. The grocery retailer also notes that hundreds of more jobs are available, with the inclusion of positions at distribution centers, brick-and-mortar stores and manufacturing facilities.

The company has also provided a function that lets shoppers round up their orders to make food bank contributions, with the inclusion of purchases via Kroger Pickup. And, as of April 7, it has restricted the number of shoppers in retail locations to half of the global building code’s calculated capacity.

The grocery space has seen the largest roller coaster ride when it comes to sales swings and quickly changing consumer behavior while the world of business has been disrupted during the past few weeks. An increasing proportion of consumers are moving their grocery spending to digital — 14.3 percent in April compared to 3.9 percent in early March.

Online grocery increased dramatically from March 12 through March 15 per Rakuten Intelligence as previously reported. The dollar value of orders from full-assortment grocery merchants over the time — for buy online, pickup in store (BOPIS) as well as home delivery, went up 210 percent. The number of orders, on the other hand, rose 151 percent.

U.S. food and beverage eCommerce sales were projected to increase 23.4 percent to $32.22 billion this year prior to the coronavirus crisis. Additionally, overall penetration among U.S. internet users increased to 56 percent last year from 38 percent in 2018.