FREE DAYTIME DELIVERIES ON EVERYDAY ESSENTIALS WITH DRINKLY

As more and more Scots are facing up to the reality of living behind closed doors for the foreseeable future, shopping for groceries and other household essentials is becoming a growing concern. On-demand delivery service, www.drinkly.co.uk is extending a helping hand to those in self-isolation in Edinburgh and West Lothian by offering free daytime delivery on all convenience goods such as toilet roll, paracetamol and hand wash (this is subject to individual retailer’s minimum spend policy).

‘Bringing the local store to your door’, Drinkly is an online marketplace that connects consumers to quality convenience stores in their area, enabling them to shop their entire product range online with guaranteed delivery in under one hour.

John Robertson, founder and CEO of Drinkly, said: “Modern technology will be absolutely critical to the way we go about our lives as this crisis escalates, whether it’s accessing virtual office systems, taking part in live online exercise classes, or simply buying what we need to keep our households running as smoothly as possible, without leaving our homes.

“There will be many people out there who don’t have a network of friends or family nearby that they can call upon to help with things like grocery shopping – equally there will be others home alone during the day who can’t venture out to pick up something urgent, so we hope that we’re relieving a little bit of the pressure by offering free daytime deliveries.”

With the government ordering the closure of pubs, bars, restaurants and cafes and continuing to urge consumers to minimise social interaction, Drinkly has seen a spike in orders of 96%.

Mike Thorburn, a Drinkly customer said: “I’ve been self-isolating for the past week and the only upside to the situation has been that I’ve been able to order ice-cold beer from Drinkly to start the weekend…I put on a playlist of music I like, video called my friends and we all pretended that Friday night drinks was still a thing.”

Robertson added: “When so much is out of our control, I think it’s only natural that people want to keep as much normality in their lives as they can.  Enjoying a glass of something nice at the weekend – even if it’s not in a bar with your friends – is one of life’s simple pleasures that seems worth protecting in these difficult times.”

While consumers are increasingly turning to tech, Robertson stressed that the high street could have an even greater uphill struggle to survive if it didn’t get online and quickly.

“Ninety-nine percent of the retailers now on our marketplace were traditional bricks-and-mortar businesses with no online presence,” he said.  “As this crisis deepens, it’s pretty clear that customers are going to stop coming to them, they need to go to the customer and internet retail is the best way forward. We provide the tech to help independent retailers create an online store and start selling within a couple of weeks and we are waiving registration fees for the time being.”

How to Order on Drinkly
Step 1: Head to www.drinkly.co.uk or download the app (iOS and Android)
Step 2: Enter your postcode to reveal which retailers deliver to you
Step 3: Place your order and pay by credit/debit card (proof of ID needed with purchases of alcohol)
Step 4: Order is delivered within 1 hour or at a time of choosing

Opening times vary by retailer.