After hours in the car, it’s finally time to hit the beach. But first — a stop by the grocery store to pick up cereal, chips and drinks.

Now, an Alabama business can eliminate that tiresome last step that chews up precious vacation time. Through Stockd Concierge Services, vacationers arrive at their beach destination with a fridge and pantry full of their favorite items.

Business co-founder John Price once needed to switch condos in the middle of a beach trip. He had to choose between “enjoying the beach and the area and going to the grocery store just to have food to eat that night,” he said.

He and co-founder Drew Willoughby saw a need “in being able to prevent people from having to spend an hour in the grocery store as soon as they arrive, after they have just driven four-plus hours to get there,” Price said.

“If you’ve been in the car for 10-and-a-half or 11 hours, you unload your stuff, the last thing you want to do is get back in the car and go shopping,” Willoughby said. They estimate people spend at least 90 tiresome minutes just getting groceries.

So before leaving, vacationers go to the Stockd website and select items they want from Publix – at store prices. Working with property owners, Stockd employees have it ready and waiting in their rooms. The flat fee is $24.99. Typical orders are $350 to $500.

“When the tenant arrives, everything is pre-delivered and waiting on them to enjoy,” Willoughby said.

Through Stockd Concierge Services, vacationers arrive at their beach destination with a fridge and pantry full of their favorite items. (Stockd Concierge Services)

The founders are especially proud that their website has product photos instead of word descriptions.

“It’s just like you’re shopping at a Publix or any other website that sells groceries,” Willoughby said. “You have actual physical products that you click and add to your cart. We separate ourselves that way.”

The 20-something former high school buddies both attended the University of Alabama. After running the idea through the Innovation Depot business accelerator program, they started the company in the spring of 2021 by marketing to Gulf Shores and Orange Beach on Alabama’s coast. They have since expanded to Fort Morgan, Perdido Key, Panama City Beach and the Highway 30-A strip in the Florida Panhandle.

Deliveries are on Fridays and Saturdays year-round.

“I guess the need is definitely a lot more during the busy seasons when it’s kind of jam-packed in the grocery stores with all the people coming down for vacation,” Willoughby said.

They’ll deliver groceries – and even bait — to boats. Some owners like to stay put on their multimillion-dollar boats, they said, so they bring the orders dockside.

You can head straight to the beach on your next vacation, no shopping necessary, if you use Stockd Concierge Services. (contributed)

The entrepreneurs are proud of being “Alabama locals.”

“We absolutely are prideful in our state and want to bring something good back to it and have it recognized on a national scale, if possible,” Price said.

The business is still in the startup phase, but the guys have big plans.

They want to book fishing trips, Jet Ski rentals and beach chair rentals. And not just at the Gulf Coast — maybe Gatlinburg, Big Sky country and Denver over the next few years.

“We really are looking to help the average family who only gets to take one or two vacations a year. We want them to be able to enjoy that as much as possible with as little stress and as little cost as possible,” Price said. “That’s why we do what we do.”

This story was previously published by This is Alabama. Want to read more good news about Alabama? Sign up for the This is Alabama newsletter here.