Lidl tests click & collect in Germany

Lidl is testing a click & collect service in Germany. For now, the test is only meant for customers in the Rhine-Neckar region. They can order products online and then pick them up in a branch of the supermarket discounter.

The Rhine-Neckar region was chosen because of the mix of big cities and rural areas. In total, 80 branches take part in the pilot project, which has been running since April and has been met with great interest among customers so far.

Items that are too big won’t end up in-store

The click & collect service is only eligible for non-food items, such as clothing, toys or small household appliances. Online orders customers want to pick up in-store may not exceed a certain size, because bulky goods won’t be delivered to the store.

In Germany, a click & collect service is already very popular among fashion retailers and DIY stores, but at discounters such as Lidl, the pickup of online orders isn’t widespread. But of course, also for Lidl, the service could lead to getting more people to the physical stores and thus connecting the stationary business with the online shop.

‘Lidl should set up grocery delivery service’

Mannheimer Morgen cites trade expert Boris Planer, who says that Lidl still has a great deal of catching up to do in the digitization of its business, despite the click & collect test. “It would be really exciting if Lidl set up a grocery delivery service.” Other supermarkets, such as Rewe, have already made this happen. Rewe now delivers groceries in about 75 cities.