In the latest move of third-party delivery providers muscling into grocery, DoorDash has partnered with Albertsons, one of the nation’s largest grocers, to offer grocery delivery within an hour from nearly 2,000 grocery stores across the country including Safeway, Vons and Jewel-Osco.
Consumers can now order groceries and essentials for delivery within an hour through DoorDash’s marketplace with no time slot, queues or minimum order size required. Albertsons will offer more than 40,000 grocery items from stores for delivery, including fresh and prepared food, core grocery, floral and convenience items at select stores.
In addition, in select markets, customers can order groceries through their local Albertsons Cos. store’s website for same-day delivery powered through DoorDash Drive, DoorDash’s white-label fulfillment platform that powers direct delivery for any business.
“Consumers’ desire to get everything in their neighborhood on-demand has increased dramatically. We are thrilled to partner with Albertsons, one of the largest food and drug retailers in the world, as they expand their already strong local footprint beyond their four walls to offer consumers convenient access to on-demand grocery delivery,” said Fuad Hannon, head of new verticals at DoorDash.
“We are committed to expanding our delivery experience in order to meet our customers’ needs whenever, wherever and however they want,” said Chris Rupp, chief customer and digital officer, Albertsons Companies. “Our partnership with DoorDash is the next step in our digital transformation to help make our customers’ lives easier and help answer the perennial question, ‘What’s for dinner tonight?’”
The partnership includes both immediate and long-term initiatives, including supporting the expansion of Albertsons’ first-party grocery delivery business with DoorDash Drive, launching a custom loyalty program, expanding delivery hours, and offering a unique selection including specialty items, prepared meals, meal kits and new concepts.
In addition, DoorDash and Albertsons Cos. are offering a first-ever digital gaming experience, giving users the chance to play and score savings on future grocery orders. Users can now play “In The Bag”, an interactive and exciting digital video game that prompts users to place as many fresh grocery staples as possible—including apples, asparagus, milk, and avocados— into a virtual DoorDash grocery bag before reaching the top and running out of space. The more groceries you can fit into your grocery bag, the more you save with promotions per tiered score with a top scorer having the chance to win a $5,000 credit* toward purchases on DoorDash.
This announcement builds upon DoorDash’s expansion into new categories beyond food, and certainly isn’t the last shoe to drop as third-party delivery providers expand their offerings far behind prepared restaurant meals. While that transition began with alcohol, convenience store items and pharmacy goods, grocery and retail are clearly the next frontiers in delivery.
