Waitrose offers home delivery to customers who spend £60 or more and click and collect. But there were no slots available for either when The Sun attempted to book on Thursday, April 9. Here's the response I got from them - very prompt it was too! To change orders is easy when you know how hey! Thanks for your help guys Orders may be amended up until 12.00 midday on the day before delivery or collection, but Waitrose Entertaining items may only be added if we have sufficient notice.

1. Can I Change Waitrose Delivery Slots
2. How Do I Change My Waitrose Delivery Slot

UK grocer Waitrose has extended the capacity of its rapid delivery service, more than trebling the number of slots available each week.

The retailer said it can now provide more than 2.5 million households the option to use the service to get the food and essentials they need during the Covid-19 coronavirus crisis.

In a statement released today (17 April), Waitrose said by the end of next week at least 40% of these new slots will be reserved exclusively for the elderly and vulnerable. The major grocers are able to identify people most in need after the government shared the relevant data with them a few weeks ago.

Waitrose said it will contact customers on the government's list of vulnerable people to inform them they have priority access to rapid slots – a service which enables shoppers to receive up to 25 grocery items within two hours or less or on the same day.

The Waitrose rapid service has been trialled from eight London shops, as well as in Hove, East Sussex. From today it will be available in the areas surrounding an additional 20 shops across London.

Waitrose Rapid will be available in the areas served by the following stores, from today:

• Barbican
• Belgravia
• Brent Cross
• Buckhurst Hill
• Canary Wharf
• Chiswick
• Clapham Junction
• Enfield
• Finchley Road
• Harrow Weald
• High Holborn
• Kings Cross
• Mill Hill
• Monument
• Putney
• Richmond
• South Bank Tower
• South Harrow
• Stratford
• Whetstone

By adding these new locations, Waitrose said it will increase the number of available rapid delivery slots from 2,000 to 7,000 each week.

The supermarket chain, which is part of the John Lewis Partnership, has also announced it will offer an additional 10,000 online grocery collection slots, taking the total number available each week to 30,000. It is doing this by introducing its online collection service in around 70 additional shops across the UK by the end of May.

Some 40 shops are expected to offer this by the end of April, and at least a quarter of the collection slots will be reserved for the elderly and vulnerable as is the case with its general Waitrose.com service during this time of health emergency.

Ben Stimson, Waitrose.com director, commented: “We are now making more online deliveries than Christmas week, every week, and have increased slots to reach 20% more customers than usual.

“We know there is demand for more slots and we are doing all we can to give as many people as possible the opportunity to get the essentials they need – especially those who need them the most.”

He added that Waitrose has recruited hundreds of drivers and increased the number of extra people-hours picking Waitrose.com orders by nearly 50%. Research from Totaljobs and the British Chambers of Commerce, released today, found logistics and IT sector job availability spiked significantly in March, as businesses adapted to the crisis and sought the relevent skills base.

The expansion of digital, virtual and delivery services form a key part of the new John Lewis Partnership five-year plan, led by new chairperson Sharon White.

Grocer Waitrose and department store chain John Lewis, which comprise the partnership, will make several significant changes to their operations as the group looks to stem falling profitability and target a £400 million annual profit in five years’ time.

Its last full-year financial results showed profit before staff bonus, tax and exceptional items was down to £123 million in the 12 months to 30 January. In September, it posted a £580 million loss for the first half of the current financial year – driven by the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, widespread structural change, store closures, and a downturn in business.

Essential Retail picks out five key points from the turnaround strategy:

Digital and delivery

The partnership has committed to investing more in digital services. During the pandemic it launched a series of virtual classes and consultations across Waitrose and John Lewis – and it will do more of this, illustrated by the recent launch of the John Lewis Virtual Christmas shop, which is powered by 3D tech platform Matterport.

Waitrose’s online delivery capacity is set to grow to 250,000 orders per week, up from 55,000 pre Covid-19. A quarter of delivery slots will be kept for vulnerable people, and more partnerships – like its tie-up with delivery app Deliveroo – have been promised.

CX commitment

The partnership acknowledged “it’s not always been as easy as it should be to shop with us”, so it is investing £1 billion over the next five years to accelerate the capabilities of its online business and to transform the shops it is not closing. This investment covers improvements to the websites, apps, and general customer service operations.

Proper partners

Waitrose and John Lewis will become more closely aligned, according to the new strategy. Already, for example, the Waitrose Christmas hampers are available through John Lewis, which in turn will sell Christmas trees in 300 Waitrose stores, supported by shoppable QR codes.

The two retailers are already putting plans in place to link their loyalty schemes, and John Lewis click & collect is available at Waitrose stores. The partnership has promised more expansion of click & collect to bring John Lewis to additional communities.

Rental and recycling

A partnership with online furniture rental business Fat Llama will be extended, giving John Lewis customers more chances to rent rather than buy items. Indeed, playing a part in the so-called circular economy is a focus for the partnership, which has committed to all products having a ‘buy back’ or ‘take back’ solution by 2025.

Channel changes

Can I Change Waitrose Delivery Slots

Identifying new channel opportunities, the partnership is set to invest further in housing. It said it has identified 20 sites it owns that could provide affordable rented housing rather than pure retail, and it aims to enter the property market while furnishing these sites with John Lewis products and establishing Waitrose food link-ups.

The general plan is to be more environmentally-friendly and ethical, with a concerted focus on employing people from the care system and investing profit back in its staff. The partnership is thinking differently about its proposition in several ways, underpinned by a significant digital shift that it expects will John Lewis become a 60-70% online retailer by 2025.

How Do I Change My Waitrose Delivery Slot

More localised product ranges are expected to be developed, and the Never Knowingly Undersold price promise will be changed in the months ahead, as part of a continued evolution of pricing strategy in general.