A Christchurch mum trying to buy winter clothes for her growing baby was surprised to find it was easier to order alcohol during lockdown than essential clothing items.
Liana Halloran told 1 NEWS she tried to order essential items from The Warehouse's online store during the second week of Alert Level 4.
Her baby boy was about to hit 11 months and she needed new clothes for him, especially as the colder weather kicked in.
After finding a lot of items had already sold out, she placed an order on April 1 for about $40 worth of winter woolies and was expecting the order to arrive on April 6.
When her order was delivered she was suprised to find only one item had arrived.
“I got a hat delivered and then an email saying they had sold out of what I needed,” Ms Halloran says.
She said it had been a week since the order had been placed online when she received the news. The Warehouse then went on to refund the remainder of the order.
Ms Halloran said she had to go to a more expensive baby clothing supplier who were able to deliver what she needed.
“It was disappointing because my husband managed to order two rounds of alcohol and get it delivered and I could not even get baby clothes when I needed them which were essential,” she said.
A spokesperson from The Warehouse says Ms Halloran’s experience was most likely an isolated incident as she says the company is “very transparent” about its stock levels.
“All stock offered for purchase online is available from our fulfillment centres. In a small number of situations, a sudden demand for an item has meant stock has run out before its stock availability status is reflected online. In these situations, we make contact with the customer to offer an alternative product or a refund.
“Currently, online orders are being shipped in 10–14 days, but can be as quick as 5-10 days.
“It’s a longer timeframe than usually expected and we are sorry for any inconvenience this may cause. We encourage customers to track the status of their orders using The Warehouse app.”
The spokesperson told 1 NEWS that “a mix” of factors could have been involved in Ms Halloran’s case, including courier delays and the physical ability to pack orders.
“From a Warehouse perspective we are very transparent about our stock levels and see it as an isolated incident,” she said.
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