Walmart buys NYC parcel delivery company
US retail giant Walmart has bought Parcel, a same-day and last-mile delivery company based in New York. Walmart has revealed that the deal closed on Friday (29 September). Although Walmart declined to disclose the acquisition price it did say that “it was smaller than previous acquisitions we’ve made this year”.
Walmart described Parcel as a “24/7 operation that delivers packages the same-day, overnight and in scheduled two-hour windows”.
In a notice posted on the Walmart website today (3 October), Nate Faust, senior vice president, Walmart U.S. eCommerce Supply Chain, said: “Parcel has partnerships with several meal kit, grocery and e-commerce companies, and has delivered more than 1 million meals in the past two years. So our immediate plan is for Parcel to continue serving its existing clients and growing its customer base. There’s a lot of upside and I’m excited about the potential there.
“But I see even more upside for our own same-day deliveries. Jet has been testing free same-day delivery of certain orders to customers in New York City. We can build upon that and plan to leverage Parcel for last-mile delivery to customers in New York City – including same-day delivery – for both general merchandise as well as fresh and frozen groceries from Walmart and Jet.”
Faust said that Parcel’s links to the Big Apple made the acquisition particularly attractive to Walmart.
“New York City is the top market for both Jet and Walmart.com, and because of the density of the area – along with the proximity of our fulfillment centers – it’s the perfect place for high-impact innovation,” said Faust. “Born and bred in New York City, Parcel has developed unique expertise delivering to customers in a distinctly challenging and essential market. This acquisition allows us to continue testing ways to offer fast delivery while lowering our operating costs.”
Reports that Walmart was gearing up to make same-day deliveries in New York City surfaced last week – and were duly noted by Post&Parcel.
We have also been tracking some of the other innovative delivery solutions that the retailer has been trialing – including in-fridge deliveries and arranging for store staff (aka “associates”) to deliver goods on their way home.
In his notice on Walmart website today, Faust gave a round-up of what is in store: “While customers are looking for low prices, we also know they want convenient experiences that make shopping easier. It’s why we’ve focused on creating more options to meet their needs, such as our free two-day shipping to home, our pickup discount and free online grocery pickup service.
“It’s also the reason we’ve been testing a number of different innovations at Walmart and Jet to further enhance how we serve customers even faster, with programs ranging from associate delivery to in-building and in-fridge delivery with Latch and August Home.
“We’ll continue to explore more ways to give customers the freedom to choose how, when and where they receive their orders from us.”
