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(edit: changed category)
Valet parking at grocery stores. Take the guys who collect all the
carts/trolleys and repurpose them as valet drivers. They'll make
more money, without having to PAY them more, because of tips.
It's a win win and (checks notes) win.
It would actually save the store
money too,
potentially a lot of money. Shopping carts will last a lot
longer, no more being used on rough, unforgiving asphalt
parking lot surfaces, and won't get stolen anymore since
they won't actually leave the store at all now. They won't
get hit by vehicles, reducing liability claims against the
store for minor dings and scratches, and it reduces their
liability from people slipping and falling on ice trying to
cross the parking lot on foot in the winter.
It also might go a long way toward preventing parking lots from
being hotbeds of criminal activity such as drug deals and
carjackings, making it safer for women and minorities to shop at
night. You could also completely do away with handicapped
parking spots, increasing lot efficiency across the board.
Valet Market
https://www.valetmarket.com/ Has nothing to do with this idea. An unmanned robo store. [doctorremulac3, Mar 11 2022]
Here's the app
https://apps.apple....market/id1564002874 Seems kind of pointless. [doctorremulac3, Mar 11 2022]
[link]
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This could be a thing. Have them bring the car back around
and load the groceries too I assume eh? [+] |
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Absolutely. It would actually save the store money too,
potentially a lot of money. Shopping carts will last a lot
longer, no more being used on rough, unforgiving asphalt
parking lot surfaces, and won't get stolen anymore since
they won't actually leave the store at all now. They won't
get hit by vehicles, reducing liability claims against the
store for minor dings and scratches, and it reduces their
liability from people slipping and falling on ice trying to
cross the parking lot on foot in the winter. |
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That's good, I'm adding it to the post lol |
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Seriously, the more I think about this the more mind-
blowing it is to me that this isn't already a thing. |
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Yea, mind blown here as well. |
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I think you could absolutely talk stores into doing this, but
how to you protect it as intellectual property to make some
money? |
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Business plans are tricky without a technical aspect. |
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Got it! Have this be done with an app! That might actually
be patentable! |
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Hit the app, drive up, the valets see you coming on their
version of the app, bow deeply as you walk into the store,
take your car and park it, (the app keeps track of the
spaces that are available so it's very effecient) When you're
done, hit "I'm done" your car appears, the guy loads your
groceries, you hit the tip button maybe, get in your car
that's completely loaded with groceries and drive home. |
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Mic drop. (oops, slippery mic I guess) |
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Seriously bro, I've looked into patenting business plans and
it's very tricky. Most patents are barbed wire meant to
discourage people not a brick wall, but with an actual app
this could be effective. |
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Own the app and charge stores a monthly fee. Dont' get
greedy, 100 bucks a month a store. Ten thousand
stores....multiply the.... carry the.... that comes out to... |
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What would the app do? Ah, I see your edit. Very nice. |
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Hell, this would probably cut down on store left pretty
dramatically too. |
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Woah! The valet sees everything as they load it into the car... |
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That absolutely, but I meant things like beer runners,
people who sprint out with a case of beer or other
merchandise. You're not finding your car or getting your
keys back until you return the merchandise, and if you DO
somehow get away, such as with a spare key, we've got
your plates. |
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Lookign up "valet market" and there's a unmanned store
they're trying out. Fail to see how this has anything to to with
a valet, it's the exact opposite of having a valet. Has nothing
in common with this idea except the words. |
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Well I'll be damned, they DO! I wonder why this isn't more
widely done! If I had to guess, they didn't go hard enough
with it. Shouldn't have made it optional. |
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Yea, you would have to wait if there weren't enough valets. |
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Could valet for other customers |
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That's a fair point, but on a busy day you often have to wait
for a parking spot to open anyway. If you consider the time
it takes to circle the lot, sometimes several times, waiting
for a spot to open up, then to have someone beat you to it
so you have to go back to circling, I'm not sure the total
wait time would go up much if at all. |
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// They'll make more money, without having to PAY them more, because of tips. // |
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They can grab the carts of many customers in a short time. Driving each car takes several minutes per customer. As such your calculation is impressively bad. |
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If a store went totally onboard with this parking system,
instead of making it a seldom-chosen option, the cost
savings from reduced merchandise and cart theft alone
would likely allow them to hire additional valet drivers at no
additional cost. If a large casino on a busy Friday night can
handle valet parking just fine, I'm not buying a grocery
store couldn't. |
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I'm not saying it can't be done. I'm saying it can't be done without paying extra for those valets with almost no savings. |
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One thing many stores do is simply reassign non-essential
staff from other departments to cart collection when the
demand gets particularly high. They could conceivably do
the same thing with valet attendants when needed. |
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1- Pick the time / day of the week that's the least busy. Maybe, Monday 8 to noon? (Dunno, they would) |
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2- Make this "Seniors Get Valet Parking And Shopping Assistance Day" or "SGVPASAS" |
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3- Come up with a better name. |
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4- Since it's the least busy time of the week, have all hands do the valet, shopping assistance for seniors only, let's say... 65 and up? |
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5- Have it also be Senior Savings Day so "SGVPASASSSD" |
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(I will not let this idea die dammit. I swear there's something here.) |
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Your idea is a very good one, Doctor. |
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Thank you V, I think this has some legs. |
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You need a lanyard for that thing. |
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That's why I said you have to go all in with it. The chief
complaint was that it made the people who choose the
service look like they think they're better than those who
don't. Costco doesn't make their membership optional. |
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If you're using an app, the delay shouldn't be a problem. Just
tell the app when you get in the checkout line, and that
should be enough time to have the car waiting by the time
you pay. |
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If you've seen the bagging clerks at our local Kroger
there's no way you would want them operating your
car. |
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Ok, so maybe hire/train BETTER clerks lol |
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I would kinda like it if they carried me out too. My knees and
hips hurt after I walk the length of the really big superstores. |
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Yes but someone needs to push the cart, because you can't reach the ground to push yourself along if you're sitting in it. |
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Whilst I hesitate to speak for the European countries from
whence many Bakers hail, in the good ol' US of A we have
motorized shopping carts (trolleys) at most grocery stores for
those who've a difficult time walking. |
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