PITTSBURGH – GetGo’s kitchen is now accessible from the comfort of your home—if you live near its Baum Boulevard in Pittsburgh, that is. Giant Eagle’s convenience store chain has started a pilot program with Grubhub to offer delivery of its meal options at this location, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
“Our kitchen has been evolving over the last year,” said Jon Cox, director of fresh food for GetGo. “We want to be seen as a restaurant first. Grubhub seemed to be a great evolution for us.”
The test comes as Giant Eagle revamps its mobile app, combining its grocery, convenience store and pharmacy apps into one. The new app debuted a few months ago, but the company has only recently started marketing it. The app features an order-ahead option for GetGo stores.
“Digital ordering is now really all about the mobile app,” said Bonnie Riggs, NPD restaurant industry analyst. Mobile app usage and online ordering for meals jumped 18% in 2017, and now grabs 1.9 billion foodservice visits, according to the NPD Group.
“Consumers are becoming increasingly comfortable using mobile apps. If restaurants or food service operators don’t have a mobile app, consumers may very well choose a restaurant that does,” Riggs said.
GetGo will also trial UberEats at a Columbus, Ohio, location. For either service, a $3 fee is tacked on for delivery. Other convenience stores are partnering with delivery services, including Sheetz, which added delivery via Grubhub at a few locations a few years ago. Sheetz also allows ordering via Amazon’s Alexa.