Retailers Promote ‘Touch-Less’ Product Delivery To Address Fears Of Coronavirus Spread

Several companies have jumped on the contact-less or touch-less delivery bandwagon in the last few days as retailers have begun to offer customers the option to receive orders without direct human contact amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Salvatore “Soccer Sam” Fantauzzo, founder and franchisor of Salvatore’s Old Fashioned Pizzeria, was an early proponent of offering customers touch-less pizza delivery. Nick Pearl, a Salvatore’s franchisee, came up with the idea after seeing events in Italy, says Fantauzzo. Salvatore’s rolled it out system-wide on March 9.

During the ordering process at the Salvatore’s website, customers can request touch-less delivery. In that case, the pizza is dropped off at the customer’s designated location for them to pick up, rather than involving a physical hand-off.

“I felt we should offer this to those that are worried and [it’s] safer for our amazing drivers,” Fantauzzo says.

What has the reaction been? “All locations have been extremely busy,” Fantauzzo reports, with a percentage of customers specifically requesting touch-less delivery.

Since early March, a number of companies have announced a “no-touch” delivery option.

Stop & Shop’s home delivery customers can now request an “unattended delivery,” where the driver drops the grocery order on the customer’s front step, rings the doorbell, and departs.

Likewise, the FreshDirect food delivery provider has also added a touch-less delivery option. When a customer requests unattended delivery, the delivery person places the FreshDirect order outside, where the customer designates, for pick up later.

In China, KFC and Pizza Hut introduced contact-less pickup from inside its stores, where customers grab their prepared orders from racks, reports Business Insider Australia. Or they can opt to have deliveries dropped off by a courier, who watches from a distance as the customer picks up their order.

While food delivery seems to be taking the lead in offering customers the option not to interact with delivery people, other industries are adopting the approach.

Misha Kaura, an artist and designer with a small atelier in Paris opening in a few weeks, is offering touch-less painting delivery. Paintings are left outside the customer’s location by drivers wearing leather gloves, Kaura says, and the reaction has been positive. “Several customers have written in saying they appreciate being able to buy my artwork without the risk of interacting with a delivery driver,” she says.

As the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise in the U.S. and consumers increasingly isolate themselves as a preventive measure, touch-less delivery is likely to become a standard delivery practice.