Sysco opens doors to public with contactless grocery delivery and pickup
Home cooking with restaurant-quality ingredients just got a whole lot more convenient and affordable.
Sysco@HOME, a new online grocery service launched by Canada’s leading food-service distributor, now lets British Columbians order premium products for contactless delivery or pickup at one of three locations in the Victoria, Kelowna and Vancouver areas.
Sysco is Canada’s premier distributor of food products to restaurants, hospitals, schools, hotels and other industries. The company’s trucks and drivers can be spotted daily at B.C.’s most popular restaurants, bars, cafes and venues.
But after the pandemic brought unprecedented demand for online grocery delivery and pickup, the company expanded its customer base to make its products available directly to the public for the first time with Sysco@HOME.
The service has been rolled out at 15 locations across Canada and already has thousands of customers in B.C., says Ryan Gibson, B.C. regional manager for Sysco@HOME.
British Columbians can now buy top-tier ingredients previously only available when prepared by cooks and chefs at their favourite local restaurants, and superior to what they would find at a big-box grocery store.
“It’s a unique shopping experience delivering high-quality, premium ingredients to your home in a convenient way,” Gibson says. “It’s products that chefs are using in the industry.”
The prices are competitive, too.
Gibson points to items like boneless, skinless chicken breast, steaks, quick-frozen shrimp, bacon and frozen mixed berries, that cost less when comparing portion sizes to big-box stores.
And while the service tends to attract families of four or more, it also has plenty to offer smaller households, which have enough fridge or freezer space.
Gibson says during the summer, customers were able to take advantage of BBQ staples such as steak, seafood, chicken and hamburgers, but the transition into fall has led to increased demand for soups, spices, frozen vegetables and berry blends for smoothies.
Customers are also buying plenty of packaging for school lunches, and personal protective equipment such as masks, hand sanitizer and disinfectant.
The service is easy to use from the comfort and safety of home. Visit Sysco@HOME website, choose the location closest to you, and browse from hundreds of products, select a timeframe for contactless delivery or pickup, and pay by credit card.
The order will be ready the next day at one of the three stores or brought to the customer’s doorstep by a Sysco driver using a refrigerated delivery truck.
Delivery zones include most of Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley, Greater Victoria and Kelowna. There is no delivery fee for orders over $200 and just $19.99 for smaller orders.
Health and safety are top priority for Sysco staff, particularly given the pandemic, adds Gibson.
“The comments and feedback I get from customers is how professional the experience is, from going to our warehouse and working with the team there to having products delivered to their homes, and how happy they are with the products,” Gibson says.
“And, at the end of the day, they’re saving money at the same time.”
To celebrate the launch of the service, Sysco@HOME is running a contest from Sept. 14 to Oct. 11 where every customer who orders more than $200 is automatically entered into a draw for a freezer and $500 worth of Sysco product, for a total value of more than $800. One giveaway will be held at each of B.C.’s three locations.
