COVID & Cottage Country: Advanced AI Shows Ontarians How to 'Do The Right Thing'

ANDIE.WORK ENABLES ONTARIANS TO PROTECT COTTAGE COMMUNITIES & CUT THE LINE WHILE STOCKING UP

TORONTO, May 15, 2020 /CNW/ - Andie.work, Canada's leading, free AI online service and app to predict lineup wait times at the LCBO and major grocery stores, is firmly supporting cottage country mayors, the Ontario Premier and provincial health recommendations to shop locally this May two-four weekend (May 15-18.) Andie allows Ontarians to check in on the wait times at their own local LCBO, grocer and big box stores so that they stock up before leaving town. Just in time for the long weekend, shoppers can now also search online by postal code if they want to hit the last retailer on their way out of town and skip the lines. However, Andie strongly recommends shopping local for the long weekend earlier in the week at one of the better times below:

Best and Worst Long Weekend Shopping Times in Ontario:

Best time to shop rank	Day of Week	For City/region	Time Range	Trends
best	Friday, May 15th	All of Ontario	11.30 - 1.00pm	Second least busy day of the week   Wait times up 44%
good	Sunday, May 17th	All of Ontario	1.00pm - 2.00pm, 5.15pm - 7pm	Wait times dropped 11%
busy	Thursday, May 14th	All of Ontario	11.45am - 12.15pm, 2.30pm - 3.15pm	Second busiest day
really busy	Monday, May 18th	All of Ontario	1.30pm - 3.30pm	Busiest day of the long weekend   Wait times increased by 26%

Andie has also published the following checklist to help Ontarians remember to do the right thing and support COVID restrictions:

How to #ProtectCottageCommunities this May long weekend:

• SHOP LOCALLY (near your home), IN ADVANCE! Check Andie.work before stocking up at your local grocer, liquor store, or big-box store. Simply stock up for the weekend BEFORE you hit the road.
  
  
• Take a minute to plan and avoid shopping in Cottage Communities so we don't risk exposing that community to potential COVID-19 spread.
  
  
• If you forget something and need to shop in a Cottage Community, #CheckAndie first and go shopping when lines are low. This way Cottagers won't overwhelm small stores at peak times.
  
  
• Use Andie to help elderly friends and family search their local area by postal code and let them know the best times to buy food or pick up a prescription.

"For all of those choosing to visit their cottage this weekend - let's keep our Cottage Communities safe and protected," said Dan Snow, CMO of Andie.work. "We are a part of these communities even if we are seasonal residents. It's up to us to help protect and preserve them as we visit. Stay safe, Stay healthy and #CheckAndie before shopping for any essentials."

Ontarians can sign-up for free on the website: app.andie.work. The Beta version of the Andie app is now available to Android users. To beta test, download it at: www.andie.work/downloads/andie.apk

About Andie.work:

Andie uniquely offers AI-generated line-up information at Grocery, liquor, big box, pharmacies and other retailers from coast-to-coast across Canada. Andie is updated in real-time, with no information black-outs. Andie has processed and provided over 57,000 real-time waiting time predictions since going online on April 18. Andie now has support and real-time data for close to 4,000 liquor stores, beer stores, and wine stores across Canada. That includes 3,162 speciality stores under the LCBO, Sask Liquor, Beer Store, BC Liquor, and Wine Rack brand. By tracking the 144 major chains, ANDIE also provides line-up information on close to 50,000 grocery stores and pharmacies across the country.

How does Andie work? Why is it more reliable than other lineup monitoring apps?

Andie uses all data and information points possible. The web app has recorded a massive amount information about how you and your neighbours shop, how many people live in your neighbourhood, the size of the stores in your area, how many people are allowed in each store (based on store size and 6-feet COVID-19 space restrictions,) the time of day, and the current weather. Using all of this information, Andie delivers a service that pushes you localized, real-time information about wait times and lineups in your neighbourhood.

Additional Andie features:

Andie has a text service that recommends the best time to shop each day so that you can conduct your weekend or mid-week shopping with the least amount of worries. This service leverages on local shopping habits over the past week in your area. Andie's predictive information then provides optimal shopping times for you throughout the day.

Andie also has an added intelligence layer that ensures shopping time recommendations do not create harmful gatherings for users that are living in the same area.

SOURCE Andie.work

Patrick McCaully, Pointman News Creation, [email protected], www.pointmannc.com