Homebase has always been about social distancing measures and a lot of people have noticed that change with the Homebase opening times. With Homebase, you no longer need to worry about being a part of the general crowd when meeting friends at your favorite restaurant. You can reserve your table and stay open later for dinner. You don’t need to waste time fighting traffic, waiting in line or trying to figure out where your car is parked. It all becomes easy with Homebase. The changes are subtle but they are there.
In Homebase’s favor, the changes are not all negative. If you live in the US, there are many states that do not permit mobile food vendors. However, this rule isn’t always true. There are still many states that allow mobile vendors so you can remain open for dinner and drinks on the Homebase premises. For non-US residents, most states allow in-store hours and so you can still use your own car to get around and visit all the stores.
Another change with the Homebase menu is the replacement of in-store locations with interactive digital floors. The old floor markers were not very user-friendly and you had to constantly stop and take notice of where your virtual feet are. You then had to go through the menus to find what you were looking for. This process was not only time consuming but it also prevented you from experiencing the full joy of online shopping. With the new technology, your virtual shopping cart is always right there in front of you so you don’t even need to stop to see where your items are.
The introduction of home delivery services has also made Homebase more convenient. It allows you to have all your groceries shipped directly to your home without having to deal with the hassles of going through the warehouse or the hassle of collecting your boxes. Home delivery services are now available throughout the UK, including all major towns and cities.
The Homebase menu also includes a new way to shop: the in-store locator. Once you enter your home-delivery address, you will immediately be shown stores that are within walking distance. This way, you can stay on-line and browse through your favorite stores while avoiding all the traffic and commotion that happen when you drive to different stores. If you need to check out specific brands or items, all you have to do is look up your home delivery address using the in-store locator and you will be shown a list of stores that sell the item you’re looking for.
Homebase continues to make changes to improve customer service and eliminate inconveniences such as long waiting periods and broken equipment. However, these changes have had the effect of making people more loyal to Homebase stores, and it’s less likely that customers would leave one store to remain open at another. Some customers who leave one store and become loyal to another store over time may be frustrated by the change, and they may continue to shop at one of the original stores even if it’s inconvenient.
It’s possible that Homebase could be changing their store locators in the near future. An internet search will bring up any current store locators, and the Homebase website doesn’t mention any plans to change them. However, the Homebase community page does indicate that the company will soon be including maps from all of its stores in its search results. If you plan to use the store locator services online, you may want to bookmark these locations to save them for future use.
Homebase has definitely improved customer service and made purchasing easier. But will they be able to sustain success and become as well-known as the major UK retailers? Only time will tell, but as long as there’s something new to try at home, I’m optimistic that I’ll be staying open at Homebase for a while!