The new in-store "Savings Station" kiosks will allow anyone with a Stop & Shop loyalty card or account to simply scan their card or input their phone number on the device as they enter the store, and then all that week's advertised digital-only offers will be automatically loaded onto their account. The chain-wide kiosk rollout follows a one-year test in a few stores.

According to a 2022 Pew Research Center report, 25-percent of seniors do not have internet access, and 39-percent do not own a smartphone.

"Until now, only tech-savvy shoppers could save on their grocery bill but they had to find and electronically clip each digital coupon individually on the store's website or app," explained Consumer World founder Edgar Dworsky. "Now thanks to Stop & Shop's innovation, with one swipe of their loyalty card, regular app users will get instant activation of all the offers at once, but more importantly, all the shoppers who have been shut out of these deals previously will be able to save on groceries."

Two years ago, five consumer organizations (Consumer Reports, USPIRG, National Consumers League, Consumer Action, and Consumer World) called on the CEOs of a dozen major supermarket chains to come up with an easy alternative way for their digitally-disconnected customers to be able to take advantage of digital-only weekly sale items. Stop & Shop is the first to answer the group's call.

"We hope that other supermarket chains follow Stop & Shop's lead and make it easier for all shoppers to take advantage of digital deals in these times of high grocery prices," said Chuck Bell, programs director for advocacy at Consumer Reports.

December 11, 2024