As of Wednesday, 32 commissaries have rolled out the new doorstep delivery benefit, with another 14 expected to come online by the end of the day, said Kevin Robinson, spokesman for the commissary agency.
And by Sunday, eligible customers near another 24 military grocery stores will have the option of having their discounted groceries delivered to their doorstep, under a new contract to provide the service at 70 stores, according to Defense Commissary Agency officials.
The contract includes the flexibility to expand delivery service to the remaining 108 commissaries in the United States. That expansion to all 178 commissaries is optional and is up to the commissary agency.
It’s a marked change in how the stores do business, bringing commissary access to more customers who may be unable to get to the stores because of disability, time or logistical issues. And the convenience of grocery delivery is widely available in commercial grocery stores.
“We are striving to anticipate our patrons’ needs and do what it takes to be their grocery provider of choice,” said John E. Hall, director of the commissary agency, in a statement to Military Times. “Commissary delivery is just one example of how DeCA is working to offer a next-level benefit to better serve our military community.”
In December, commissary officials awarded the contract for doorstep delivery to OnPoint, a delivery service previously known as ChowCall. The 70 commissaries that are part of the contract include eight pilot locations that have been offering the delivery service since 2022.
Since OnPoint began rolling out the delivery service to more stores, “the process is going well with no major issues,” said Todd Waldemar, founder and CEO of the company.
The contractor will deliver groceries within a 20-mile radius of the commissary.
Currently, the delivery fee for all commissaries will be $17.75 for customers within 10 miles and $31.25 for those within 11 to 20 miles. The fee is set by the contractor. The commissary agency does not have the flexibility in pricing delivery fees that commercial retailers do, because of their limitations in marking up prices, for example. Fees for commercial grocery stores’ delivery vary widely, and a number offer annual memberships related to delivery.
“Through doorstep delivery, we are offering our customers an online and mobile shopping option, where they can browse items, submit orders, schedule delivery and pay for their groceries from their computer, phone, tablet or mobile device,” Hall told Military Times.
Under the system, customers order groceries online, which are retrieved by store employees who pick the items and hand the orders over to OnPoint. OnPoint then delivers the groceries to the customer’s location. The delivery can occur as soon as three hours after the order is submitted, depending on the location, because commissaries need the time to pack the order.
Commissary officials have provided an online ordering, curbside pickup service for years, and have been working to provide a delivery service.
“We need this. Our customers want and need this contract,” Hall told a meeting last March.
“I’m really excited about this,” he said at the time.
The list of the 70 commissaries can be found here.
Karen has covered military families, quality of life and consumer issues for Military Times for more than 30 years, and is co-author of a chapter on media coverage of military families in the book "A Battle Plan for Supporting Military Families." She previously worked for newspapers in Guam, Norfolk, Jacksonville, Fla., and Athens, Ga.
