GoPuff delivery appears to be downsizing its Jacksonville footprint
Some Jacksonville residents may soon see one fewer grocery delivery option.
GoPuff, a service that offers deliveries of everything from food and alcohol to electronics, appears to be downsizing in the Bold City, and some economists aren’t surprised the company’s taking a hit in the current economy.
GoPuff came to Jacksonville in late 2019.
It quickly expanded to four warehouses, but not even three years later, the company appears to be cutting its First Coast footprint in half.
Last month, GoPuff announced it would be closing 76 warehouses across the country, a move that is expected to result in 1,500 layoffs.
We were first tipped off the company may be downsizing here in Jacksonville after noticing sales on its products declined between 40% and 70% in some parts of the city.
A GoPuff driver who asked to remain anonymous told us two of the company’s four Jacksonville warehouses are set to close in the coming weeks.
“Two of our locations are shutting down. So what’s going to happen with the call volume is they’re going to shift those to the other locations,” said the driver.
Don Wiggins, an economist with decades of experience, said he’s not surprised to see GoPuff taking a hit.
“I think this is a normal contraction that’s going to happen as the pandemic winds down. You’re just naturally going to have somewhat of a contraction in these companies,” said Wiggins, who is the CEO of Heritage Capital Group.
We reached out to GoPuff’s press office and asked how many local jobs may be impacted by the closures, but we didn’t hear back.
The driver we spoke with said she’s still optimistic about the future of the company.
“I feel like it’s picking up. I feel like more and more people are starting to use the delivery services, especially during the summertime when the kids are off,” said the driver.
But Wiggins predicts that as consumers look for ways to cut costs, many may bite the bullet and return to the grocery stores in lieu of paying delivery fees and tips.
“We’re getting squeezed at the grocery store. We’re getting squeezed at the gas pump, getting squeezed on rent, getting squeezed on auto prices — you name it. So that’s something that consumers will look to cut and probably change habits a little bit,” said Wiggins.
However, he believes the convenience that delivery services offer will prevent consumers from fully returning to pre-pandemic shopping behaviors.
“I think they’re here to stay,” said Wiggins.
If you live in the delivery zone of the soon-to-close warehouses, you can find some pretty major discounts, but you’ll also find a lot of the products are quickly going out of stock.
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
