Meet Sally, Puregold’s shopping ally

While Aling Puring, the iconic character developed by Puregold Price Club, Inc., has become representative of the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that the local supermarket chain caters to, a new development represents the company’s foray into digitalization: Sally, or the Puregold Mobile application.

Short for Shopping Ally, Sally was designed by Puregold in partnership with Globe to offer remote, cart-less grocery shopping to its customers. From the comfort of home—or anywhere, basically, as long as you have an internet connection—you can simply choose the Puregold store nearest you, then start scanning the barcode of the grocery items which you intend to restock. Meet the minimum required amount of purchase, proceed to checkout, and just pick up your items in-store.

“We’ve dedicated pickers and packers, a separate queue, and we agree on what time you will pick up the items,” said Antonio de los Santos, vice president for operations. “So this allows you to plan your day ahead; you can go watch a movie, or even sleep.”

Reordering products will also be easier thanks to Order History, another feature of the app. Jenny Jacintos, Puregold senior manager, said the feature was ideal for all SMEs, who can easily replenish stocks with a single click. Payment options include cash, credit/debit card, or GCash.

One can also get real-time responses about order status and other grocery-related inquiries through the “Ask Sally” in-app chat.

The service is available, so far, in 10 branches (J.P. Rizal, Makati City; Shaw Boulevard, Mandaluyong City; Qi Central, Araneta Avenue for E. Rodriguez, Quezon City; Paco, Manila; San Joaquin, Pasig City; Commonwealth, Quezon City; Libertad, Pasay City; Monumento, Caloocan City; Barangay Tuktukan, Taguig City; and Ayala Malls, Liwasang Kalayaan, Marikina City.

By the end of the year, Delos Santos said they plan to make the service available in 100 stores. Puregold currently has a network of over 380 stores nationwide.

Delos Santos said they were positive the introduction of Sally to the market would drive more customers to their stores and boost sales. He also emphasized the importance of data to the company, as it explores di­gitalization.

“Knowing our customers’ purchase behavior allows us to create better experiences for them. For example, we can offer you complementary products based on your previous purchases. Or if a certain brand is launching something new, we can send messages to consumers loyal to that brand,” Delos Santos said.