Personal Shopper

...and she is awesome!  So, back when I started our new eating habits in March, I began shopping around at different natural food stores in the Twin Cities.  I tried The Wedge in Minneapolis, Valley Natural Foods in Burnsville, and Lakewinds Natural Foods in both Minnetonka and Chanhassen.  They are all great, but my personal preference is Lakewinds in Chanhassen.  C and I would go shopping during the day and admittedly, it would take FOREVER!  I know it was take us quite a long time because of a few different reasons.  One, I was shopping differently, buying more bulk items, different flours, C would be very helpful in helping pick out all the produce and two, because I was at a completely new store.  Then, one day, Linda, was kind enough to mention her role at Lakewinds.  She is the personal shopper for the store.  Her job is to go through your shopping list you submit online, she checks you out, and keeps them in the store until you are ready to pick them up.  All you have to do is call the store on your way there, you stop at the loading area, pick up your food, and you are done!  It probably saves me 1 and 1/2 hours or more everytime I use this service.  Have a mentioned how awesome it is?  I LOVE IT!!! And, I highly recommend it!

  Here's the details:
   You do have to become a member of the Lakewinds Natural Foods.  The membership is $90.00 for a lifetime subscription, you never have to renew.  There is a number of peaks including that once a month, on a day of your choosing, you receive 5% off your total purchase (and it can be different each month, you just tell them the day you want to use it).  We have had our membership since April and it has been well worth it.
   You complete your shopping list online.  If you complete your shopping list by 11:00 a.m., your items will be ready to be picked up anytime after 3:00 p.m.
   If your order is over $75.00, the personal shopping service is free - which I think is really easy to spend over $75.00 at the grocery store.  If it is under $75.00, it is a $5.00 fee.
   Another benefit is that you can save your list each time and it will be there next time you want to shop. I will admit it took awhile the first time I used this option but by the second time, it was very quick.
   That's it!  You are done, all you have to do is call when you are 10 minutes away or so and they will have it ready for you when you pull up to the loading area.
   Have I mentioned how much I love it yet?