// Waitrose has revealed its online business processed over 150,000 orders in a week
// It is adding 150 new delivery vans to its fleet to enable it to increase its delivery slots
Waitrose has reached a milestone after seeing its online business process more than 150,000 orders in a week for the first time.
The retailer’s weekly online orders are now more than double those processed at the start of the year.
Waitrose said it is also adding 150 new delivery vans to its fleet to enable it to increase its delivery slots further during the coming weeks.
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Demand for online slots on Waitrose’s website is still outstripping supply due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Despite this, the retailer has been giving elderly and vulnerable customers priority.
Meanwhile, its Waitrose Rapid service has recently trebled its deliveries to 7000 per week, with at least 40 per cent of the slots reserved for vulnerable customers.
The service offers up to 25 products for delivery within two hours.
The retailer has been investing in its online operation since the beginning of 2020 and in February announced that a further 24 shops would be made delivery shops between now and September 1, when Waitrose.com becomes the only place shoppers can order Waitrose food online.
Three of the 24 shops are due to go live with a delivery service this week.
“The expansion plans we had in place for Waitrose.com have allowed us to respond as best we can to the huge surge in demand in recent months – especially from vulnerable groups who need home delivery services,” Waitrose.com director Ben Stimson said.
“We’re seeing a fundamental shift to many people’s shopping habits, and we’re incredibly proud of how our shops have scaled up our online operations at such speed.”
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