List of stores offering designated shopping hours for vulnerable shoppers
Market Basket offers senior shopping hours between 5:30 and 7 a.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.
Hannaford customers who are 60 or over and individuals identified as being identified by the CDC as at high risk may shop, will have the opportunity to have more social distance while in the store. These special hours for our 60+ customers are 6 a.m. to 7 a.m., Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of each week.
Costco Wholesale Club started a twice-weekly senior hour March 24 for Tuesdays and Thursdays and added Wednesdays as a third day. It’s also allowing “those with physical impairments” to participate.
Walgreensalso has a Tuesday weekly senior hour from 8 to 9 a.m., open to caregivers and immediate families, as well.
Through April 28, Walmart stores will host an hour-long senior shopping event every Tuesday for customers 60 and older. The designated hour will start one hour before the retailer’s 5,000-plus U.S. stores open.
All Whole Foods Market stores in the U.S. and Canada will let customers who are 60 and older shop one hour before opening to the public.
Big Lots: Stores are reserving first hour of each day for senior citizens and “those most vulnerable to this virus,” CEO Bruce Thorn said in an email to shoppers.
BJ’s Wholesale Club: Starting March 22, all locations will open one hour early every day for members who are age 60 or older. This opening hour will be from 8 to 9 a.m. daily and there will be a designated entrance.
Costco Wholesale Club: The retailer is now offering three senior shopping hours a week and is allowing “those with physical impairments” to also participate. “On Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, Costco warehouses will open from 8 to 9 a.m. for members ages 60 and older, and for those with physical impairments,” Costco’s website notes.
Dollar General: The Goodlettsville, Tennessee-based discount chain announced it is dedicating the first hour in its more than 16,000 stores in 44 states to help senior shoppers “avoid busier and more crowded shopping periods.” The retailer said in a tweet that it wasn’t “qualifying a specific age” for the set-aside time.
DoorDash: The on-demand delivery company is “powering free delivery from more than 2,000 grocery store locations nationwide by waiving delivery fees for those 60 years of age and over,” DoorDash said in a blog post. Hy-Vee, Woodman’s, Kowalski’s Markets and hundreds of independent grocers and specialty food shops like Piggly Wiggly, LifeThyme Natural Market, Le District, and Matherne’s are included and directions on how to get the discount are on the blog post. Mercato.com, which has more than 900 participating stores, also is offering free delivery with DoorDash with promo code OVER60, according to a news release.
Sam’s Club: The wholesale club introduces twice-weekly special hours for seniors, people with disabilities and those with compromised immune systems, and a “Shop from Your Car” concierge service starting Thursday, March 26. The special hours will be held every Tuesday and Thursday from 7 to 9 a.m. “until further notice.”
Stop & Shop: Starting March 19, the retailer, which has more than 400 stores throughout Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York and New Jersey, will give shoppers 60 and older 90 minutes to shop each morning from 6 to 7:30 a.m., according to the Asbury Park Press, part of the USA TODAY Network. Stop & Shop said the dedicated time better enables social distancing and there would be a designated entrance for seniors.
Trader Joe’s: Starting March 23, the first hour of daily shopping will be reserved for senior customers, from 9 to 10 a.m. The company didn’t specify the age range of seniors, which is generally considered to be 65 and older, but it varies by company.
