Takealot Launches Cape Town Pick Up Point Complete With Delivery Robots, Shoppers Can Receive Order in 3 Mins

• Takealot has officially launched its Richmond Park store for pick up and collection online orders
• The online shopping platform has introduced automated guided vehicles, which are essentially robots, to the store
• The robots will assist with parcel deliveries to customers and help the Takealot staff to offer faster service

CAPE TOWN - Takealot has opened its doors in Richmond Park for online shoppers to conveniently pick up their parcels in just three minutes.

The new warehouse is packed to the brim with exciting upgrades including the introduction of automated guided vehicles, which are essentially robots, to assist with transporting and delivering packages to customers.

The robots will assist with parcel deliveries to customers for the first time ever, in the world and with the help of them, Takealot staff can offer faster service. The online shopping platform has an average shopping of three minutes with the assistance of the 'little robot helpers', according to Business Insider South Africa. Aside from boosting productivity, they introduce an ‘element of fun, excitement, and innovation’, the platform said.

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According to Takealot, standard and next-day collections are free at the Richmond Park Takealot Pickup Point. The pickup point is 1,560m2 big and the warehouse space is 4,611m2. MyBroadband reported that Takealot’s packaging will also display the Forest Stewardship Council sticker on its passages after it was accredited by the group. Forest Stewardship Council is a highly trusted organisation.

Mixed reactions from Netizens

South Africans were seemingly displeased with the implementation of robots in Takealot stores due to the high rate of unemployment in the country:

Brian Hall said:

“Way of the future. Robots don't strike and don’t have lunch breaks.”

Leigh Aanhuizen wrote:

“I cried when I saw the robots, in case anyone wants to know how pregnancy’s going.”

Nhlanhla Que Ntuli – Mncube posted:

“We don't need robots here in South Africa for now, the unemployment rate is very high, imagine how people would have been employed to collecting parcels.”

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Androux Havenga commented:

“It's slow and the system is always slow been there a few times, and the robots are pretty slow.”

Denis Delmage added:

“So, there, we start to lose jobs to robots.”

Scammers pretend to be Takealot, get people on Facebook to pay to enter a competition

In a related topic, Briefly News also reported a group of scammers have presented themselves as online retailer Takealot on Facebook and WhatsApp under the guise of hosting a competition with attractive prizes but charging people to enter.

These scammers were especially active over the festive season when many people pinned their hopes on winning prizes that would ease their holiday expenses and tide them over into the new year.

Besides the prizes, this group also advertised unrealistically discounted goods, pretending that they were selling them on behalf of Takealot, MyBroadband reports. These items included iPads, televisions and hairdryers.

Source: Briefly News