FIESTA MART TO WHEEL OUT CARTS FOR ELDERLY, CHILDREN

LINDA PURPURA

HOUSTON -- Fiesta Mart here will be installing two-wheeled carts that bolt onto existing shopping carts, both in new stores and in existing stores where additional customer assistance is required.

The two-wheeled cart, which seats two children or an adult, has tested well in two stores here and one store in Austin, according to Dennis Combs, maintenance manager for Fiesta Mart.

Combs explained that customers who come in with young children are using the cart, as are older customers who are being assisted by their adult children.

He noted that many adult children don't mind pushing their mother or father around the store, nor would a customer who has a disabled spouse. In the latter case, battery-powered carts are then freed for use by other customers.

"We felt this unit was more versatile, in that possibly older adults who needed assistance in getting around the stores could use the cart, as well as the mother with a couple of toddlers," Combs said.

While the two-wheeled cart has been well received, Fiesta Mart continues to provide battery-powered carts for customers coming into the store who need assistance.

The two-wheeled carts are supplied by Assembled Products Corp., Rogers, Ark.