When investing in a fleet of new shopping carts, retailers and grocers have several decisions to make: How many carts are needed for a given store? What types of carts are optimal for the store’s shoppers? How will these carts be stored? Should carts be customized?

While all of these questions are important, one factor takes precedence above them all: durability. If your shopping carts are cheaply built, the concerns mentioned above don’t really matter — they’re all secondary to whether or not your carts are truly heavy-duty. But what difference does cart durability make on your bottom line, exactly? Let’s explore how and why heavy-duty shopping carts are essential for your continued success.

How Heavy Duty Carts Are Heavy Duty

Reduce Repair and Replacement Costs

No matter how many carts you purchase, if they’re easily damaged, you’ll end up having to replace most, if not all, of them anyway. Retail and grocery businesses must treat their shopping cart fleet like any other important asset. That is to say, these carts are a major investment. Saving a buck in the short-term will end up costing you much more in the long-term. 

Sending damaged carts away to get fixed poses two major problems. First, it temporarily reduces the number of carts available to customers. And second, cart repair isn’t free, not by a long shot. In fact, it might not even be practical to have your carts fixed if the damage is severe enough; it might actually be cheaper to replace your worn-down carts than to repair them. And even still, buying shopping carts for your store is a major expense, especially if you last purchased carts not too long ago.

Simply put, investing in heavy-duty carts from the outset is the best move for your business. Yes, carts built from better materials tend to cost more initially, but consider the money you’ll save down the road by avoiding major repairs and replacements.

Keep Customers Satisfied

Offering heavy-duty shopping carts also benefits your customers. And when your shoppers are happy, your business thrives. You might not think that customers care about, or even notice a cart’s condition, durability, or appearance. However, when any aspect of your store is falling apart, most customers can’t help but take note, and their experience is affected as a result. So, when you consider that the majority of shoppers will pick up a cart or basket upon entering your store, how well your carts hold up makes a major difference in determining customer satisfaction.

Put another way, you don’t want your shoppers to think all that much about the carts they’re using. Instead, you want them to take the quality of their carts for granted. The experience should be seamless. Your customers should be able to walk in, grab a cart, and do their shopping comfortably. There should be no missing, stuck, or squeaky wheels, dented basins, rusted handles, dislodged trays, etc. If your carts are truly heavy-duty, these potential problems will rarely come up, and your customers won’t have cause to complain.

Increase Store Safety

Investing in high-quality-heavy-duty carts is also a matter of safety. Weak, damaged shopping carts pose several risks to your customers and employees, including but not limited to:

• Scrapes, cuts, and pinches from sharp, protruding metal or plastic components
• Impact from poorly-controlled carts (broken or missing wheels, lack of balance, etc.)
• Slips and falls from spilled or dropped items that fell out of damage carts
• Muscle strain and/or impact from attempting to remove misshapen carts from storage
• Floor hazards caused by damaged wheels and loose cart components

The bottom line is this: heavy-duty carts promote a safer environment for everyone because they remain sturdy, functional, controllable, and are easy to store.

Boost Your Reputation

Your business’s reputation is also on the line when it comes to the carts you provide. As previously mentioned, customer satisfaction is directly tied to your store’s success. Still, there’s more to the picture than simply preventing customer outrage and incidents. You also want to amplify your brand to incentivize shoppers to return. There are, of course, so many ways to do this, but enhancing your store’s atmosphere is one of the most important. And indeed, your shopping carts contribute to the look and feel of your store and brand as a whole. So, if you want to retain the best possible reputation, you need to provide the best shopping carts to your customers.

What exactly constitutes the “best” carts to boost your reputation? For starters, you need heavy-duty products. The more durable your carts, the easier they are to maintain and use. Additionally, your carts (and baskets) should be customizable, prominently featuring your logo to reinforce your brand. And lastly, your carts should be optimized for your store and customers. You might offer both smaller and larger carts to accommodate different shopping styles; provide kid-friendly carts for parents and their children; offer specialty carts like cargo carts or double basket carts; or sell personal carts for those who want or need them. 

Above all, though, your carts must hold up over extended periods of time. Your customers will appreciate that you offer a durable, ideal cart selection, and your reputation will benefit as a result.

Are Your Carts Built to Last?

How are your current carts holding up? If it’s time for an update, don’t settle on cheaply made products from unknown sources. Go with an ethical, American manufacturer that uses quality recycled materials to make all of its heavy-duty shopping carts and baskets: Good L Corp.

Good L Corporation delivers innovative shopping cart and basket solutions for retailers on a global scale. From a fleet of new custom carts to launch your store opening to replacement baskets that supplement your existing shop supply, Good L Corp can configure the right carryall strategy to boost your retail business. Let’s get started! Contact us today for a no-pressure sales quote.