@ The Speed of Life

Labor Day Special

2011-09-01T10:31:00.000-07:00

It's Labor Day again. Time for the end to summer heat and for the kids to head back to school (or, as my wife calls it, "the most wonderful time of the year"). We've got a nice sale on those back to school supplies that you've known you needed, but did not buy all summer long. I've still got to pick mine up!

For those of you who are spending this weekend in the city, either because you are saving some cash or because your Hamptons house is recovering from Irene, we're running a new special for this weekend only. If you want to stock up a bit, you can get $25 off your orders over $200 (plus free delivery, of course). Don't forget to use the coupon code LABORDAY to get the discount.

Not only is this a nice savings to get and gives you a good deal, but I always enjoy seeing if we really can pick, pack, verify, deliver $500 worth of groceries to someone in under 60 minutes. We always manage to do it, but it always amazes me when we do.

Have a happy Labor Day everyone and welcome to the most wonderful time of the year.

Win a Free Steak

2011-07-30T12:00:00.000-07:00

We are running a survey on our facebook page to see which cuts of meat people like best from Ottomanelli Butchers. Whoever picked the winning choice will get a free steak with their next order.

Just go to our facebook page and vote before August 5th.

Only 2 days left for Buy More, Save More

2011-07-29T19:27:00.000-07:00

Only 2 days left for the Buy More, Save More program that gives you $10 off orders over $100 and $25 off orders over $200

I've decided to keep the free delivery levels lowered back to $50 as we have had great feedback from our customers about the decision to lower it.

Let me know what you think - do you love free delivery at the lower level?

Gloomy Weather

2011-06-17T06:16:00.000-07:00

Weather looking overcast and gloomy today. For most people, weather like this can make you miserable, but I am happier than a duck on a pond on stormy days like this.

Nothing makes the benefits of our service more clear than a few raindrops on the window when you realize you are out of milk or want a fresh steak. You can stay in and stay dry while we schlep around in the rain with all of your goods.

(And, for those of you who worry about the rain for our staff or your orders, our staff is given high quality rain gear and your items are protected in waterproof bags during transit)

So, the next time you see the rain clouds looming, you can probably blame it on me; I've spent years perfecting a large variety of rain dances and other rituals.

Moving into Summer

2011-06-08T08:24:00.000-07:00

The heat waves are starting in NYC now. With that comes all of the usual small business headaches that we have to deal with. Air conditioners that need to be upgraded, loading up on cooler bags for delivery, changing the product mix to make sure we keep ice pops in stock. And, dealing with slowdowns in volume as half of NY takes off for the Hamptons each weekend...

At least there is some good news going on also. The new discounts are working very well and we are getting great feedback from customers about the large order discounts. With those, people no longer have to trade off low price vs top quality service - we can give both.

I have to run and get back on the phone with the architects about the new air conditioners being installed soon (assuming we can satisfy the NYC dept of buildings).

Free Delivery Level Lowered to $50

2011-06-04T09:51:00.000-07:00

In my ongoing efforts to make Max Delivery both amazingly convenient AND economical, we just lowered the threshold for free delivery from $75 to $50.

Combining that with our Buy More, Save More program, you can easily save money while doing your daily shopping.

Spend $50, Get Free Delivery

Spend $100, Get $10 Off

Spend $200, Get $25 Off

Compare that to other online grocers with their $6+ delivery fees plus fuel surcharges (whatever that is supposed to be), and you'll see that Max Delivery is an economical way to do your shopping, as well as being the fastest and easiest.

Porterhouse Steaks are too good

2011-06-02T08:05:00.000-07:00

As I've said a few times on this blog, in addition to owning the company, I am also a big Max Delivery customer (though, surprisingly, not the biggest user, but that's another story).

I used to order the meats from Max Delivery, but, to be honest, I did not love them. They were organic and healthy, but not dry aged and the cut wasn't my favorite, so it did not grill up nicely. I would occasionally sneak one from Whole Foods or a local butcher to meet my carnivorous desires.

But, Ottomanelli has changed all that for me. I ordered one of our Porterhouse steaks last night, added just some salt and pepper, and grilled it up. The night before, I got the lamb chops and did something similar.

Sugar Sweet Sunshine used to be my favorite Best of NY, but Ottomanelli has now taken over for me.

Now, I never have to leave home again!

Extending the sale

2011-05-31T09:35:00.000-07:00

Due to the overwhelming positive feedback on the large order discounts, we are extending them.

So, order over $100*, and get $10 off.
Order over $200* and get $25 off.

When you add these discounts in, combined with the free delivery discounts at that level, you can save as much or more with Max Delivery than even the most bargain-basement next-day online service.

Our goal, in general, is to give the best service around, not necessarily be the cheapest. But, with our delivery efficiencies, we can afford to also give back these discounts for our customers who are stocking up, so we are going to continue it.

Let us know what you think.

* Due to legal consideration, these discounts do not include products ordered from Artisan Wines or Bacchus Wines.

Get $10 off a $100 order

2011-05-30T10:00:00.000-07:00

As we try to reward our large shoppers, we have set up a sale for Memorial Day that lets you save $10 on any order over $100. Plus you get free delivery on any order of that size, so the savings really add up.

With this discount and the free delivery, compare similar orders for us vs even the lowest priced online competitor and we stack up very well.

Use code: MEMDAY

Thanks for your continued business and Happy Memorial Day

Peach Season

2011-05-24T10:11:00.000-07:00

Peaches are in stock now. Grab a luscious, juicy organic peach and bite into it. Nothing screams summer coming better than that.

Since peaches are highly perishable, only purchase the amount that you need for the next few days.

O Ottomanelli & Sons Are So Nice

2011-05-18T08:03:00.000-07:00

You have to meet the 4 Ottomanelli Brothers to really understand how great this meat shop is. They are incredibly friendly and they work the counter themselves giving you personalized service with a huge knowledge base.

I am so happy to have them as part of our Best of New York partners. They continue the tradition of finding the best small stores around town and bringing it to my door. But, they also continue in the tradition of Deb/Peg from Sugar Sweet Sunshine, Jason/Amy from Artisan Wines, Roni from Roni-Sue all the others in being great people to work with.

There is something refreshing about dealing with good small business people. They know their business, they are honest, and agreements are easy to come to because all sides are looking to make it work for everybody, not to cheat each other.

Looking forward to more of this long-term relationship with another great local business.

Steaks on Sale

2011-05-13T15:17:00.000-07:00

The new steaks from O Ottomanelli & Sons are truly wonderful. As part of our effort to get people to try them out, we have a limited time Buy 1 Get 1 Free steak program for the Ribeyes and Strip steaks. Try one out and then let us know what you think.

O Ottomanelli & Sons Meat Market

2011-05-10T09:52:00.000-07:00

I am overjoyed with the addition of O Ottomanelli & Sons Meat Market to Max Delivery. From a customer's perspective, having super-high quality, affordable steaks, lamb, and other meats is great for me - as one of Max Delivery's biggest customers, having better meat will make me very happy.

From the business owner's point of view, this partnership gives us another unique product line that saves our customer's time and energy and gives them another reason to use us.

From a New Yorker's point of view, I love supporting the small businesses around town and avoiding the "big box store" crazy mentality that has gripped the rest of the world. I love our small shops full of people like the Ottomanelli brothers. Drop by their store on Bleecker St in the West Village to say hi.

Orange Returns!

2011-03-15T06:42:00.000-07:00

The biggest concerns with the new web design had to do with colors and fonts. Specifically, many of you told us that you wanted the orange back and hated the new muted grey site. So, we've heard you and the orange border is back along with a number of small, subtle color adjustments that should make the site more vibrant to look at and feel more like the old site.

We're still working on a few more enhancements to the home page and other pages, so stay tuned to see what is coming next and please keep the feedback coming at our survey.

New Site Design - Cont'd

2011-03-13T11:22:00.000-07:00

We have been working furiously to try to incorporate the latest comments from all the people who have taken our survey about the new design. Thank you all for the wonderful comments - there have been some great suggestions.

A few of the new suggestions are being implemented/tested now, including slightly larger fonts and bringing back the orange menu bar (instead of the more muted grey), and just adding a little more color to the pages.

Please let us know your thoughts as the site changes/evolves to (hopefully) make your shopping faster and easier than ever. Feel free to take the survey a second time if your opinion changes...

Thank you all again for the great feedback and keep it coming!

New Site Design - Mixed Reviews

2011-03-11T07:13:00.000-08:00

I've been monitoring the feelings about the new site design and there is definitely a mixed feeling about it. Some of you love it; some of you hate it. For now, I have left the link back to the old design on the site, so those of you who do not like the new one can get back to shop the way that is most convenient for you.

The major reason for the redesign was that the old design was clunky and not standardized and was hard to browse in many ways. I shop at MaxDelivery all the time and rarely did i click through the categories and "walk around" the store. Instead, I searched for everything that I needed, as did many other customers.

The goal is to make it easier to browse, as well as looking nicer and prettier. We'll see how well it works out.

I had some further tweaks made to the new site based upon the comments in the survey, but please keep the comments coming.

New Web Site

2011-03-10T10:09:00.000-08:00

The new design of the web site is up and live now.

I hope you like it. We took a complete look at the site, spoke to many frequent customers to see what they wanted, and designed it again from the ground up to make it work better and just look a little prettier.

Personally, i love the new menu driven interface and the overall look, but i'd love to hear your thoughts. We have a survey open for detailed comments, or just post a comment here.

I hope you love it.

--Chris

Ordering Lunch

2011-03-03T08:39:00.000-08:00

No matter how many headaches are involved in running a business like MaxD, I just love having the service available as a customer. I injured myself playing sports last night, and I am currently having my lunch, an ace bandage, and some office supplies brought up to my apartment.

I visit other places and can't understand how they can live their lives without knowing that everything you need is at your fingertips in a few minutes.

One Hour Delivery

2011-02-12T20:07:00.000-08:00

I took the kids to see "Gnomeo and Juliet" today. I couldn't help laughing that when the gnome wanted his killer lawnmower delivered immediately, the "next day" option wasn't fast enough. So, he chose "One Hour Delivery" from the site to satisfy his intense need to immediately destroy the Capulets.

Well, we don't have homicidal lawnmowers in stock, but we do deliver everything else fast enough to satisfy all of your desires....but, please take a walk around the block to cool off before ordering items intended to wipe out your neighbors garden gnomes!

Site Redesign

2011-02-10T09:02:00.000-08:00

We have been working hard to come up with a new, better design for the web site that would make the ordering as easy and quick as possible. We've got it ready to view and would love your feedback on the design.

You can see the new design by going here. The new site is fully functional, so you can do all of your shopping on it, if you would want. If you want to go back to the old site layout, there is a link on the upper right called "Show Old Site" that will take you back.

Try it out and let us know what you think by posting some comments below.

Football Playoff Season

2011-01-16T07:36:00.000-08:00

I got a great reminder of how much I love our service last weekend when I had a gathering of friends watching the Jets-Colts game. Just about halftime, with the Jets looking horrible, we ran out of salsa and were low on drinks. Luckily, I live in our service area and, with a few quick clicks, we got some more Tostitos, some salsa, and enough drinks to satisfy the group. All before halftime was over.

The Jets then came out and dominated the 2nd half to win the game.

I don't MaxDelivery want to take credit for the victory, but it sure was a lifesaver for the party.

Enjoy the games!

Snowstorm aftermath

2011-01-07T11:28:00.000-08:00

As the snow comes down again today, it obviously makes me think about the recent blizzard that brought the city to a standstill. We tried to brave the storm for as long as we could, switching from bicycles to subways and walking, but had to close for the day when the subways went kaput. To all of our customers who needed a hot chocolate or some milk that day, i can only apologize and say that we kept going as long as we possibly could.

Before we shut down, we had delivered every order successfully and had done our best to provide you with as accurate a time estimate as we could. Were we perfect that day? No. But, we communicated as best we could with our customers whenever we had an issue so they could know what was going on.

I was forwarded a link from one of the other grocery delivery services today with a letter from their CEO about the same storm and realized that, for some reason, they just don't seem to understand good service. The letter starts out discussing the storm and how it caused late orders, cancellations, and, for some reason I did not understand, late responses to phone calls. But, it then goes on to say that winter is a busy time of year and, as a result, customers should expect to have to work harder to get their daily needs met.

To me, my job is to look for those trends in business, including our "busy times", and to put additional staff or structures in place so that we can continue to give top quality service through those times. If I see a spike in expected order volume (as happens every winter), we bring on more people, add more inventory, and prepare for it. What we don't do is write a letter to our customers asking them to bear the burden of our internal issues. We don't expect you to have to worry about our problems...we are supposed to worry about your problems and find ways to service you. A service such as ours should have one goal - to make your life easier.

Feedback

2011-01-06T10:19:00.000-08:00

We just ran a periodic survey that we offer to some of our customers to give us some feedback on how we are doing, what we are doing well, and what we are not. It's always a scary experience to ask questions designed to get people to rip holes in the service that you put your blood, sweat and tears into, but it's also about the best way for me to adjust what we are doing in the company.

The latest results (though they are still coming in) are somewhat in line with previous results. Namely, many people generally love the service, but are having trouble moving us from their occasional source for quick items to a daily part of their lives.

Some of the particulars brought up is that we need to stock more in the way of meats and poultry, watch certain product lines prices (e.g. for some reason, we had an issue where our eggs were overpriced), and make sure that we don't stock out as often. There are many other insights in there and I take this feedback very seriously.

Most of what was brought up was being worked on already and, for the others, I've added it to our list of new initiatives to roll out.

So, if you were one of the people who responded to the survey...THANK YOU. If not, please always feel free to let me know what you would like to see different and I'll work to make it happen ASAP if we can.

New Years Resolutions

2011-01-05T04:54:00.000-08:00

Happy 2011! It's a brand new year and a time for making resolutions and thinking about changes.

For me, the most obvious resolution is that I will start keeping up with this blog more often. I had taken a few months off for some business initiatives and for some family emergencies which unfortunately occurred.

But, it's a new year now. Time to look forward.

So, what do we have going on at MaxDelivery in the coming months? A lot of new things are in the pipeline which should make MaxDelivery even better for our customers. Some of the things in the pipeline include:
* New site design - You should be seeing this in beta form in the coming month. I think you will love the new site.
* Added toys and quick gifts - We've recently added some toys and quick gifts to make it easier to pick up those last minute items for kids and others.
* New reusable bags - we've expanded the use of reusable bags to cut out waste from our process and have redesigned the bags to look more chic in case you want to use them for things around town.

Happy new year to all and I look forward to a great 2011!

What is Great Service?

2010-09-20T04:45:00.000-07:00

Service...what is it and how do you quantify it? Everyone says they focus on service, but we all know that is not true.

We all know bad service when we get it. I guess it is like the famous definition of pornography - you know it when you see it. A good example was my morning coffee today at one of the the large chains. The line was going out the door, while 4 staff members were standing around and waiting for one cashier who apparently could not ring up a small coffee. Customers were asking if someone else could help, but no one was able to.

Why am I bringing this up? Is it just to vent about my bad coffee experience or is there a real point here?

Here is the point. At MaxDelivery, I've tried to integrate service into everything we do. Our basic philosophy is that if we would not like a something done to us, we will not do it to others. We try to apply the golden rule to our customers in any way that we can.

Our entire business is built around establishing a strong level of trust with our customers that we will get you the things you need right when you need it. We know you don't want a credit for a broken egg, you want the eggs. So, we take extra care of every egg to keep them safe while we deliver. And, if we ever DO have one broken in transit, we'll rush over replacements asap AND give you credit for the inconvenience.

It's basic courtesy. Why do so many other companies ignore this basic level of courtesy and treat their customers so badly?

If you ever get service that is not up to your expectations, please let me know and ill get it fixed and make sure it does not recur.

We are only successful if we can keep your trust and we will work hard to keep it everyday.

MaxDelivery is ranked #82 in fastest growing retailers!

2010-08-25T08:42:00.000-07:00

The new Inc fastest growing private company rankings came out for 2010 and we were listed as the 82nd best in the retail category (#1586). You can see the link here:
http://www.inc.com/inc5000/profile/maxdeliverycom

Head on over there and mark us as your favorite and let's continue to spread the word so that we can move up the list next year!

Thank you to all of our fantastic customers who have made our success possible.

Introducing Sonny & Joe's Dips

2010-08-19T18:33:00.000-07:00

We had a suggestion to add the hummus and dip line from Sonny and Joes. We have some great options already, so I approached it skeptically, but, since they are also a local company in the city, we said we'd give it a try.

Wow. It seems strange to say that about hummus and babaganoush, but we really have to say Wow.

Personally, I am a garlic fiend, so their Garlic Addiction Hummus drew my eye. After one taste, I was sold. You have to try this along with the Buffalo flavor, Galilee (w/olives), and Toasted Sesame.

Sonny & Joe’s® continues the tradition of handcrafted excellence that first began on pushcarts in the early 1900s. An emphasis on real ingredients belies the philosophy that the truest flavor comes from a focus on high quality. Today the recipes live on in Sonny & Joe’s® spreads, salads and more, prepared in micro batches for freshness, blending spices and ingredients from around the world.

Give them a try and let me know if you agree that they truly are a step above the other options.

Another Writeup About MaxSnack

2010-07-29T11:17:00.000-07:00

It seems that we are succeeding in bringing some smiles to New Yorkers in these hot hazy days...or, maybe people just love free stuff.

New York Magazine Grub Street tried us out and seems to have liked it and passed it on. We love that people are excited, but have been getting filled up on our snacks very quickly the past 2 days. We apologize about that and are trying to expand the capacity to accommodate the large jump in people wanting free stuff.

Keep telling your friends about Super Max Snack and we hope we can keep people smiling!

MaxSnack Continuing to Bring Smiles

2010-07-27T12:02:00.000-07:00

Our new friends at TribecaCitizen.com tried out the Super Max Snack the other day. You can see his writeup at http://tribecacitizen.com/2010/07/27/there-is-such-a-thing-as-a-free-snack/. It seems to have brightened his day and we hope it starts brightening yours!

Help spread some cheer and spread the word about Super Max Snacks

Billy's MeetUp Tonight

2010-07-21T13:33:00.000-07:00

We're starting a new series of events to try to meet our customers and get some feedback or just to say hello. One of the bad parts of our service is that we never get to see our customer's face to face and, while anonymity is often nice, it's also great to see the people involved and put some faces to the names.

The first in our line of meet-ups will be tonight at Billy's Bakery on Franklin Street between Broadway and Church. We'll be there and have arranged for a Buy 1 Get 1 Free special for MaxDelivery fans who drop by.

This is your chance to tell us what you love and vent at us for what you don't in a fun, relaxing way, while enjoying a nice atmosphere in the bakery. Also, you can meet some other fans and get a chance to get out.

We hope to see you there.

Reusable Bags

2010-07-15T04:39:00.000-07:00

OK, it's time to toot my own horn on something.

Of all the things that we do well at MaxDelivery, the one that I am happiest about is the MaxReusable Bag Program.

Let me set the stage on this:

We had been in business for a few years and were doing well, but I was looking at thousands and thousands of plastic bags going out the door each week. These plastic bags were killing my green instincts - given the alternatives, they were the best choice for being eco-friendly (i.e. when you compare plastic bags to paper or (far worse) cardboard, plastic actually is better for the earth) - or, said another way, they are the least damaging to the environment. But, the plastic still was not in line with our eco-friendly goals and environmentally friendly service.

I wanted to do some kind of reusable bag, but exactly how do I ask you to bring your own bag when I am delivering it? And, how do I encourage you to actually reuse the bag so I don't shift from one kind of bag to another with the same amount of waste?

Enter the MaxReusable Bag Program
The program concept is simple -
* We give you an option at checkout to choose to get your delivery in a MaxReusable bag instead of plastic bags.
* We take a small $1.50 deposit per bag on your "MaxDelivery" account for the bag so we can encourage them to be returned.
* With your next delivery, give the empty bags back to the delivery person and we fully refund the $1.50 charge.
* We reuse the bags for other customers and, as a result, have cut our plastic usage dramatically.

It surely seems simple, but, from what we can tell, we are one of the only places that has a similar program for delivery of products. And, yes, it does make our operations a little more complex and is more costly for us, but given the benefits in terms of reduced waste, it is one of the programs over which I am most proud.

So, the next time you are walking down the street and see the piled cardboard boxes, shake your head sadly and think about how it could be done so much better if that company really made a commitment to the earth. And, then go order MaxDelivery!!

Credit Card Processors...

2010-07-14T06:59:00.000-07:00

Running a business is a Sisyphean task. Everyday, there is another crisis to be dealt with and another item to toss on the bottom of the to-do list. For those of you who have never been an entrepreneur, do something easier, like inventing a perpetual motion machine.

Today's crisis du-jour deals with our credit card processing company. They recently tightened some of their underwriting rules for us requiring information from customers to match exactly for billing address and zip code.

This sounds like a no-brainer, except for one large issue. The way that the credit card network works is as follows (more extensive version here):

We send in our customer's information (card, name, etc).
They check if money is available and put a hold on the funds. They send back to us an approval code and a separate code indicating if the address matches.
If the card had funds and did not match the address, our processor then voids the authorization/hold.

Here is where the money wrench is thrown into the process. Many banks that issue debit cards don't do anything when they receive the "void" request and, instead, just let the transaction time out (usually a few days to a week). So, the transaction just "sits" out there, sucking up available balance from the customer's card until the bank deems it is ok to release it. And, to make it worse, the customer may then try 1 or 2 more times to try to get the address right.

Of course, customers look at their statement and see 3 charges from MaxDelivery when they only placed one order. And, naturally, they are upset at us thinking that we are trying to pull a fast one. We can protest all we want that those authorizations NEVER can ever go to MaxDelivery, but the bank conveniently puts our name on the authorization, so the customers get upset at us. And, to make it even better, all that we can do to fix the problem is call the customer's bank and beg them to please release the hold.

Today, we should be able to get this decision reversed by the card processor (I hope) by putting in place some physical controls if the address doesn't match (e.g. get a card swipe/imprint if the info does not match). But, it's just another in an unending stream of tasks to be done if you care deeply about your customer's experience - which I do.

So, for those of you aspiring business owners, please ensure your are a true masochist before you take the plunge.

SuperMaxSnacks - Wow

2010-07-12T10:08:00.000-07:00

We knew that people liked free stuff, of course, but the response so far to our new MaxSnack program has been more than we expected. We apologize to those of you who got locked out by the demand over the weekend. We are looking for ways to increase the number per day, so please try again!

For those who have not tried it, please go ahead - it's a simple free snack, no strings attached.

We hope it brightens up your day a little. And, please tell your friends...

Singin' In the Rain

2010-07-10T09:31:00.000-07:00

Nasty rainy days make my life miserable, just like everyone else. The chances of catching a cab are about as good as winning the lottery. The winds whip around in manhattan making mincemeat of any umbrella that you might try to use. And, if you do manage to keep the umbrella in one piece, the cab that wouldn't pick you up drives by and splashes a puddle all over you.

But, as a business owner of a service that is just a lifesaver in the rain, I also LOVE the rain. Nothing showcases the ultra convenience of our service better than ordering a movie, some popcorn, snacks and drinks during a thunderstorm. When the MaxDelivery guy comes about 40 minutes later, it makes you feel just how great our service is and how much easier it makes your life. The only tough part of these days is getting enough people to cover all the extra orders.

And, for those who have asked, our staff gets topline Colombia Outdoor rain gear to keep them dry (though on hot summer rainstorms, they may prefer to get wet to cool off) and we take it a little slower during the storms for safety.

So, the next time it is pouring outside, you can probably put the blame squarely on me and those rain dances/voodoo rituals that I have been performing to coax the thunderstorms to come...

It's Time To Spread Some Cheer

2010-07-09T08:55:00.000-07:00

It's rough out there - the heat in the city, the economy, the oil spill, and the wars carry on. We at MaxDelivery asked ourselves - how can we make things better?

Enter Super Max Snack
We put together a program that allows you to get a pick-me-up for yourself or send some cheer to someone else in our delivery area, free of charge, and delivered instantly. Our new SuperMaxSnack program allows anyone, whether they are a MaxDelivery customer or not, to send us their current location and we will rush over to them a snack, free of charge. (The wireless carriers insist that I say here that "standard data and message rates from your carrier may apply")

Everyone I've told about the program asks me 2 questions:

"So, you are going to take my information and spam me, right?"
"What's the catch?"

The answers, respectively, are:

We will only use the info provided to send you a snack - we just need enough information to find you and deliver the snack and, after we are done: we will not mail you, sms you, email you, or send a search party out after you. About the only marketing you will get from this program will be a postcard included with the snack encouraging you to pass the word along.
There really is no catch. We wanted to come up with a way to spread a little good cheer and, at the same time, show off our whiz-bang service. We don't make any money off this. We figured that we could give a small snack during some of our slower parts of the day and spread some good will. That's all there is to it.

How does it work

We tried to make it as simple as we could.

Between the hours of 12PM and 5PM, from your cell phone, send an SMS message to our shortcode (32075) in the format:

SNACK your name, your address, zip code, any notes you want to send us

For example:
SNACK Max D., 51 White St Ground, 10013, call me on arrival

That's it. We'll send a confirmation that we received it and another when we send it out to be delivered, giving you an estimated time. After that, just sit back and enjoy the free stuff...and please pass it along.

There are some limitations, unfortunately, like a strict limit of 1/person and others. You can find the full details at our web site.

Try it out - there literally is no risk involved. You can send it to yourself or to a friend (if sending to a friend, please make sure they are available at the address you specify at that time). And, let us know what you think by posting to your/our facebook page, commenting here, or sending us an email

Let's spread some cheer!! Enjoy.

Too Darned Hot

2010-07-06T10:23:00.000-07:00

The temp should cross 100 today, but it's much worse on the roads where the asphalt seems to be roughly the temperature of the sun. As we move into the real summer heat this year, we will take our usual precautions to make sure that we get things there in a safe and reliable manner.

We love that MaxDelivery is not contributing to global warming with our bicycles, but we need our people to be pedaling those bikes. On most days, it is not a problem, but things change when there is a 100 degree steamy day in Manhattan. Riding a bike through the NY streets on days like today challenges your commitment to being environmentally friendly. It's easy to choose to ride bicycles in 65 degree nice weather, but it's much more of a challenge to your eco-credentials when you need to find safe and effective ways to deliver in the sauna-like conditions you find out there today.

There is no debate that our delivery staff has a tough job, especially when the thermometer spikes. Rest assured that we are doing all that we can to keep our staff healthy and safe in doing it - especially making sure they stay hydrated and move a little slower so as to not overexert themselves.

That goes for anyone biking on a day like today - make sure you slow it down just a bit and drink more water or sports drinks than you normally would - it's scary how fast this heat can cause problems if you don't pay attention.

Or, better yet, stay in today and let us brave the heat. We'll still get you your items on time and in great condition - we'll just be moving a little more carefully today.

To Redesign or Not To Redesign

2010-07-02T06:54:00.000-07:00

That is the question, isn't it?

Over the years, MaxDelivery has grown dramatically in the scope of the products that we offer and our web site has been continually adjusted to meet the changing selection requested by our customers. Every so often, we need to stop, however, and have some outsider look at the site with a critical eye to see if we want to overhaul it or continue tweaking it. But, with all of the craziness of running this business, redesign always seems to be the major project that gets kicked down the road for "another day"

It's time! I think we are finally going to take the plunge for doing an overhaul of the site. We're working with a great firm, named http://kokotakeuchi.com/ to review the site, make recommendations for changing it, and take a holistic view of what we do and how we can make your shopping experience easier. As we move through the process, I'll post up some of the ideas to get some feedback and just to keep everyone up to date on how we are proceeding.

In general, we are looking to streamline the flow, take advantage of some of the great features that we have that most of you have probably never seen because they are not prominent, and see where we want to add some new features. Also, hopefully, we can jazz up the look a little to make it more visually appealing.

So, any ideas on what you hate (or like) about the current site? Any cool or interesting features you want to see? Feel free to leave a comment or email us. Now is definitely the time.

Reminiscing about the "old days"

2010-06-25T09:42:00.000-07:00

I was looking at some recent posts and tweets from various people discussing Kozmo.com with them wishing that the service would come back. After I get past the obvious indignation that "we are Kozmo, only new and improved", I also reminisce about some of the good and bad of the dot-com craziness.

There was a lot to love about Kozmo when it launched. Joe Park came up with an incredibly crazy idea that you could go into a dial-up world and get people order their entertainment products online and then deliver them immediately. While we knew that everyone thought we were insane, we also knew that the service was amazing and was light years better than anything available elsewhere. And so we forged forward with a crazy dream and a lot of moxie.

You probably all know the rest of the story from there (if you don't, i highly recommend renting E-Dreams for the best view inside the rise and fall of the dot-coms). Lots of money tossed in, some incredibly cute marketing, a great service....and an eventual crash.

I picked up the gauntlet about 5 years ago to try to recreate and improve upon the magic of kozmo, without the eventual fall that occurred. When we started, it was an even crazier idea than when Kozmo did it. After all, Kozmo had "proven" that you could not make a viable business of an instant delivery service and we were "destined to fail in 6 months"....that was 5 years ago...

MaxDelivery stuck as close as possible to the original vision of a service that makes your life easier, getting for you all the things that you need everyday and delivering them in under an hour. We even kept the fees low (only a $2.95 delivery fee) and prices competitive with your supermarkets to make it easy to choose us for your daily life.

We didn't just copy the old service - we added to Kozmo's original dream by focusing the service on getting you everything you need for your everyday life. My basic philosophy is "if you still have to put your shoes on and go downstairs, we did not do our job" Did we succeed in recreating kozmo's magic? Did we improve upon it? Let me know what you think.

I DO miss those commercials with the guy getting shot out of a cannon, though!

The Fun Life of Small Businesses

2010-06-24T13:36:00.000-07:00

I was reading an article today about one of our Best of New York partners, Jacques Torres Chocolates. We've been working with Jacques for a long time and think the world of their chocolates - high end, gourmet chocolates, made right here in NYC.

The gist of this article is that Jacques was being sued by Hershey's because his "Champagne Kiss" truffles were some kind of infringment on "Hershey's Kisses" First, as you can see below, the Champagne Kiss looks NOTHING like a hershey's kiss.

Second, for anyone who has tasted the 2 of these chocolates, there would never be any confusion between the smooth silky flavor of Jacques chocolates and the .... (to be polite) somewhat less impressive taste of a Hershey's kiss. Jacques would not be interested in copying their name and associating himself with chocolate that is, most would agree, inferior in quality and taste.

Just another day as a small business person trying to make a superior product and satisfy your customers. You have to deal constantly with these small nuisances which have nothing to do with making your customers happy.

Eileens is back in stock!

2010-06-23T18:48:00.000-07:00

We've got Eileen's Cheesecakes back in stock.

We're expanding the selection of the personal sized cheesecakes to all of their flavors. The only thing wrong with them is that they are killing my ability to watch my weight. The popularity of the cheesecakes has been amazing, so apparently I am not the only one having my waistline ruined by Eileen.

**Also, look for a new announcement coming soon about a fun new program by MaxDelivery. I'm tired of all the gloom and doom in the world these days and, while I can't actually make the problems in the Gulf better, we're going to try to bring some smiles to people over the next few months.

First Entry

2010-06-23T18:47:00.000-07:00

People have suggested that we start a blog to muse over the vagaries of our unique service, along with announcing new and interesting things going on at www.maxdelivery.com. I'll try to keep the commercialization aspect of the posting to a minimum and focus more on events and happenings in running a small and fairly unique business, but I'll spend a few minutes here going over what the company is (for those 98% of you who have never heard of us).

What is MaxDelivery?
MaxDelivery is an online store that has everything you need, delivered to your door in under an hour. At its heart, it's a simple proposition - save people from running to 3-4 local stores to pick up groceries, wine, drugstore items, etc and let them get some of their life back. Do it all for them in less time than it would take to do it themselves - less than an hour for all deliveries. On top of that, we are able to do it at prices competitive with the supermarket and with a low delivery fee ($2.95). So, in my opinion (and those of our customers), we are the best thing since sliced bread (and yes, we carry sliced bread and fresh-baked loafs too!)

Who am I?
My name is Chris Siragusa, the founder of the company. I started this business about 5 years ago in an attempt to create a service that I personally found more convenient than going to the local deli. No offense meant to the next-day supermarket services, but scheduling my grocery delivery for 2 hour windows 2 days from now just never seemed convenient to me - it was more like scheduling the cable-guy for service. I've built the service with the express goal of being able to live my entire life without having to set foot in a supermarket again (haven't had to go to one in about 3 years now!) and with enabling my ability to be lazy while avoiding take out food every night.

What will this blog be about?
Now that the basic marketing spin has been done, this blog will mostly focus on the day to day issues that come up with a service such as ours. I expect there will be some amusing anecdotes about ordering that we get periodically, some discussions about new products and things we are adding, and some discussions about running a small business in New York. Hopefully, there will be some feedback and comments to make this a little bit of a 2 way street, but we'll see how that goes if we can get some entertaining content going.

Welcome to the blog and thanks for reading.