Walmart to use Postmates on grocery delivery in North Carolina

Walmart said Tuesday (April 10) it has partnered with Postmates to service the delivery efforts around Charlotte, N.C. with future expansion planned in the coming months. The retail giant recently said it would roll out an online grocery delivery option to roughly 40% of U.S. households.

“Customers are busy, they are managing jobs, soccer practice, dance lessons and social schedules; so we are on a mission to do more than keep a little extra money in their pockets,” said Mark Ibbotson, executive vice president, central operations, Walmart U.S. “With the help of Postmates, we’re making grocery shopping even easier by bringing the everyday low prices of Walmart right to the front door of customers in Charlotte with more areas to be added soon.”

The delivery option for online grocery orders allows customers to schedule a delivery time when placing their online order. Walmart said its team of personal shoppers will pick the order shortly before a member of the Postmates fleet arrives at the store for pickup. Postmates then delivers the order to the customer’s home in the time window chosen by the customer.

Walmart is charging a flat $9.95 for delivery on orders with a $30 minimum. The retailer said there is no subscription needed and there are no price markups. Customers can get their first delivery free with a $50 minimum purchase by using the promo code FRESHCAR on their initial order.

“Both Walmart and Postmates strive to make the lives of our customers easier,” said Dan Mosher, senior vice president, merchant lead, Postmates. “With our growing fleet of 160,000 couriers, we are confident that we’ll be providing Walmart customers with the ultimate convenience.”

Postmates launched its final mile network in 2011 and now has a delivery fleet of more than 150,000 drivers working in more than 50 metro areas. Those markets include Chicago, Nashville, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, Las Vegas and Denver. Cities in Arkansas are not on the list.

Walmart has also worked with Uber, Lyft and Deliv in select U.S. markets for the past two years for grocery delivery. The delivery fees range from $7 to $10. In San Jose, Walmart is piloting a white-glove delivery service for in-home deliveries that place perishables in the fridge. This service is in conjunction with August Home customers who have smart locks and connected home accessories.