Walmart is now focusing on home deliveries in a direct challenge to Amazon,com in the U.S.
The largest retailer of the world would make available delivery of groceries to the door step of people in 100 metro cities in the U.S. by the end of the year. This would be a new leaf for the retailer in its rivalry with Amazon.
After the service starts, it will cover at least 40 per cent of the U.S. households. The service is already available in six U.S. markets – Phoenix, Dallas, Orlando, Tampa, Denver, and San Jose.
“We will be able to deliver fresh groceries to the doorsteps of millions of Americans,’’ says Tom Ward, vice president of digital operations for Walmart U.S.
During the next few weeks, the company will start the services in phases and will disclose the cities to have the service in phases with start of service.
The grocery section of the website of Walmart or the Walmart Grocery app can be used by shoppers to make the purchases. Customers would be required to pay a fee of $9.95 while they have to make a purchase of at least $30.
Shoppers would be able to get their orders delivered within three to four hours if they place their orders for grocery as well as for fresh produce and seafood within 1 pm.
Following the acquisition of Whole Foods market by Amazon last year for $13.7 billion and pushed aggressively into the retail grocery business, this sector has turned out to the most critical one in the rivalry between Walmart and Amazon.
Earlier, Walmart had initiated pick strategy for shoppers who purchase online supported by its own huge network of stores with one store each within a radius of 10 miles of about 90 per cent of the American households.
The fight between the two companies has spilled outside of the U.S market as reports suggest that Walmart is attempting to purchase a 40 per cent stake in Indian e-commerce firm Flipkart. This is viewed as a strategy of the company to get into direct competition with Amazon in the Indian market.
Amazon’s speed of delivery is also being attempted to be countered by Walmart by ratcheting up delivery. While service such as Uber would be put to use for delivery of groceries to customers' doors, the company will depute over 18,000 employees in about 800 stores for catering exclusively to online purchases.
Customers in Austin, St. Louis and Dallas-Ft. Worth were provided with the same day delivery offer by Walmart last month for fresh vegetables, meat and other items with the use of delivery service Instacart and Sam's Club, the membership warehouse store wing of Walmart.
(Source:www.usatoday.com)
The largest retailer of the world would make available delivery of groceries to the door step of people in 100 metro cities in the U.S. by the end of the year. This would be a new leaf for the retailer in its rivalry with Amazon.
After the service starts, it will cover at least 40 per cent of the U.S. households. The service is already available in six U.S. markets – Phoenix, Dallas, Orlando, Tampa, Denver, and San Jose.
“We will be able to deliver fresh groceries to the doorsteps of millions of Americans,’’ says Tom Ward, vice president of digital operations for Walmart U.S.
During the next few weeks, the company will start the services in phases and will disclose the cities to have the service in phases with start of service.
The grocery section of the website of Walmart or the Walmart Grocery app can be used by shoppers to make the purchases. Customers would be required to pay a fee of $9.95 while they have to make a purchase of at least $30.
Shoppers would be able to get their orders delivered within three to four hours if they place their orders for grocery as well as for fresh produce and seafood within 1 pm.
Following the acquisition of Whole Foods market by Amazon last year for $13.7 billion and pushed aggressively into the retail grocery business, this sector has turned out to the most critical one in the rivalry between Walmart and Amazon.
Earlier, Walmart had initiated pick strategy for shoppers who purchase online supported by its own huge network of stores with one store each within a radius of 10 miles of about 90 per cent of the American households.
The fight between the two companies has spilled outside of the U.S market as reports suggest that Walmart is attempting to purchase a 40 per cent stake in Indian e-commerce firm Flipkart. This is viewed as a strategy of the company to get into direct competition with Amazon in the Indian market.
Amazon’s speed of delivery is also being attempted to be countered by Walmart by ratcheting up delivery. While service such as Uber would be put to use for delivery of groceries to customers' doors, the company will depute over 18,000 employees in about 800 stores for catering exclusively to online purchases.
Customers in Austin, St. Louis and Dallas-Ft. Worth were provided with the same day delivery offer by Walmart last month for fresh vegetables, meat and other items with the use of delivery service Instacart and Sam's Club, the membership warehouse store wing of Walmart.
(Source:www.usatoday.com)
