Released on = December 13, 2005, 10:53 am

Press Release Author = Justin L Hays

Industry = Food & Beverage

Press Release Summary = Full service grocery delivery is once again available in
Austin, TX. Austin Grocer features a practical business model that promises to
succeed where others have failed.

Press Release Body = After nearly four years without a grocery delivery service,
Austin residents can once again relax and enjoy the comforts of life while having
groceries delivered directly to their door. The opening of AustinGrocer.com early
in 2005 heralds the return of grocery delivery service to Austinites.

When grocery delivery company PCFoods departed from the Austin area in the late
1990's, Austin residents seeking grocery delivery were left out in the cold. With
the emergence of Peapod, a national grocery delivery chain, things seemed to be
looking up until the grocery delivery giant closed operations in the Austin area in
late 2000. But it was not meant to be, and Peapod left very soon thereafter. With
the dot com bust leaving behind a trail of cynical entrepreneurs, the grocery
delivery vacuum was perpetuated until Austin Grocer began offering service when
finally, after long years, grocery delivery service returned to the Austin area.

AustinGrocer.com owner Justin Hays cites an improved business model as the solution
that will help it to succeed where others grocery delivery companies have failed.
The company uses localized drivers who shop a local grocery stores rather than a
centralized warehouse distribution method. This model also limits the distance
traveled, thus partially immunizing the company to sky-rocketing fuel prices. The
company favors more fuel efficient vehicles for delivery when possible, forsaking
gas guzzling vans and trucks in favor of such models as the Volkswagen Golf diesel
(44 mpg). AustinGrocer.com is a delivery service that opened in the heart of the
energy squeeze, and expects these new approaches help to make it a viable service
for the foreseeable future.

Austin Grocer does not warehouse groceries, but rather provides online shopping
service in the tradition of such successful UK grocery delivery company TESCO.
Products are hand-picked from local supermarket shelves and packed for delivery, and
rather than utilizing a centralized warehouse, delivery drivers utilize markets
local to their areas when selecting product. Since products are delivered directly
from your local grocery you won't be seeing the Austin Grocer company logo on your
groceries, but you will enjoy fresh products and competitive prices.

The return of grocery delivery service couldn't come at a more opportune time for
many East Austin residents who have long suffered from a lack of adequate grocery
store access. Hampered by poor transportation and a mass transit system unfriendly
to transporting bulk products, some 40% of residents in Central East Austin are
without cars and must rely on friends, relatives, or public transportation to reach
the few grocery stores available to them. To make matters worse, stores local to
East Austin are often 10-40% more expensive than larger, more efficient markets
located in outlying areas of town. The solution for many of these residents is
grocery delivery, and the provider to date is AustinGrocer.com

Although AustinGrocer.com's is not free service, its prices are competitive with
higher-end retail grocery markets in town, and at $11.95 the delivery fee is
considerably cheaper than a cab fare. Despite its turbulent beginnings in the .com
boom, the online grocery delivery sector appears to be stabilizing and with the
support of local residents Austin Grocer holds the promise of delivery service for
the Austin area.

Order online at http://www.AustinGrocer.com




References:
"In the tradition of Tesco."
http://news.com.com/2100-1017-827899.html
"With the emergence of Peapod."
http://news.com.com/Can+Peapod+turn+naysayers+into+believers/2008-1082_3-256010.html
"East Austin residents without adequate grocery store access."
http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/vol17/issue42/pols.grocery.html
"Often more expensive to shop in East Austin ."
http://www.sustainablefoodcenter.org/publications_limited_food_access.asp



Web Site = http://www.austingrocer.com

Contact Details = (512)576-7615
cs@austingrocer.com

5415 Walnut Grove Dr
Austin, TX 78744