Coronavirus: Unexpected places to find groceries, sanitizer, and other goods when the store is sold out

Thursday, April 30, 2020
Unexpected places to shop for groceries, sanitizer, and other goods
Facing empty store shelves, everyday people -- and Consumer Reports -- offer their tips for shopping for necessities.

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Who knew getting groceries in America could become an issue? But with the coronavirus pandemic, it has. I recently asked on my Facebook page for problems experienced and tips shared. Boy, did people respond.

Laura posted, "I haven't been able to find Clorox/sanitizing wipes."

Mandy agreed, saying in part, "... Lysol and hand sanitizer... I can't find them anywhere."

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Stacy says, "Don't even think about finding Clorox wipes or hand sanitizer."

Rebecca has had better luck finding the sanitizers, so she offered tips. She wrote, "You can find the Clorox (wipes) at Target on a good day or Smart and Final."

Jerry posted advice too, saying Ace Hardware got on his radar when his girlfriend went into the store looking for lightbulbs and found hand sanitizer.

"She said 'they have plenty here, why don't you stop by on your way over?'" Jerry Milenbach said to me via Skype. "So I literally went to the Ace Hardware and found it exactly where she showed me, she had taken a picture of it, and they were stocked."

Consumer Reports backs Jerry up on that.

"There are a lot of suppliers of grocery-type items that you might not think about," Senior Editor, Tobie Stanger told me, "and it is time to start thinking about that. Home office stores have paper goods and cleaning supplies, and same with Home Depot or Lowe's."

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Tobie says if you want delivery, you have to really work it.

Delivery is tough. If you don't already have a subscription with Amazon for example, you are on a waitlist now.

Tobie says to check delivery websites at odd times: "Wait till after midnight when more delivery slots open up, with some of these delivery services. Some say early in the morning. Basically you have to keep checking."

Take a look at more stories and videos by Michael Finney and 7 On Your Side.

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