Morrisons today launched its much vaunted online grocery delivery service with the first orders distributed in the Midlands. Retail Week tested out the service.

Morrisons has begun its journey on the long road to catching up with its rivals in the rapidly growing online grocery channel. Chief executive Dalton Philips, fresh from delivering disappointing results to the City yesterday, kicked off a different kind of delivery this morning when he personally distributed the first order at 5.30am.

Ineligible for the service’s debut as I live in London – Morrisons don’t plan to deliver to the capital until the summer – I enlisted the help of one of the most opinionated shoppers I know; my mother. A retailer herself, Nottingham-based Heather Lawson today received the goods which I’d ordered online on Tuesday. Here’s our take on the service.

Ordering experience

Alex says: “The Morrisons.com website is simple, clear and easy to use. The navigation makes perfect sense and being able to browse through its Market Street offer is a nice point of difference. Helpfully, each item appears as a picture at the top of the screen as new items are added, helping you keep track of what your virtual trolley looks like.

“The virtual butcher and fishmonger, which have been a key selling point in the build-up to the service’s launch, are slightly tricky to find in the site’s navigation and a Morrisons customer service line operator said the service had not yet launched. However, a call to the company confirmed the service has been available since the website’s launch in December.”

Communication

Alex says: “The communication from Morrisons was impressive. Instant emails informed me of my registration and order and a subsequent email, at midnight last night, told me of the substitutions and products unavailable. It was signed from my van driver, Jay, and was written in a chatty tone which I liked, though some might find it less endearing given Jay was basically saying ‘we haven’t got what you asked for’.

I also received two texts, one asking if there was anything else I wanted to add to my basket up to 10pm last night, and another telling me the van driver’s details and missing items.

Delivery experience

Heather says: “The driver spent time outside putting everything into one box with fridge, freezer and cupboard items in separate labelled bags, which was very helpful. Jay was very friendly, and had a name badge and clearly labelled Morrisons jacket. I asked him to carry the box from the step outside the front door to the freezer and he was obliging and friendly. He pointed out substitutions and I asked if fresh tarragon substituted with dried; he checked and it was, so I asked him to return it as it was not suitable for my recipe.

“He asked voluntarily if I would like to check fresh items which I did and I returned a mango to test the service, but felt bad as the quality was excellent. On the itemised receipt, the use by date is clearly stated for each item and Jay deducted the items that I didn’t want and showed me the new total. Refunds should go through within 24 hours so I will find out tomorrow if that’s the case. I asked if this was a new job for him and if he had found the house okay, and he said it was Morrisons’ first day but he also works for Ocado so knows the area.”

The verdict

Heather says: “Overall, good. I was impressed with the prices of the coconut milk - I buy the same brand from Sainsbury’s and it was 25% less with Morrisons. Three items – blueberries, salad and steak - were on offer so that’s money saved which is good. Fresh food all looked good, to me it appears over packaged in white sleeves or cardboard trays but I guess this has to happen for packing in the van. 

“Unfortunately, the steak had more fat in than I would normally have chosen but I know there is a school of thought that more fat improves the flavour so this is just a difference of opinion. The missing pomegranate and fresh tarragon was a problem as they were for a meal tonight and are vital ingredients. This is one of the things that puts me off online grocery shopping, one missing ingredient can necessitate a trip to the shops but that is true of all the online grocers.”

Alex says: “There are clearly some early teething problems but no online operation launches without them. It’s clear the experience of Ocado is helping Morrisons create a pretty sleek offer, not least in terms of technology. The planned speed of the roll out is impressive but Morrisons will have to ensure this is not at the cost of quality and service.”