Dive Brief:
- More than 2,000 grocers across the U.S. will waive delivery fees for customers aged 60 and older on orders fulfilled by DoorDash, according to a press release.
- Participating brick-and-mortar grocers include Hy-Vee, Kowalski’s and Piggly Wiggly, as well as e-commerce platforms Mercato, Rosie and GrocerKey. The initiative is being powered by DoorDash Drive, the platform’s white label service, which grants partners on-demand access to DoorDash’s fleet to fulfill deliveries.
- Free senior deliveries kicked off Friday and will run through May 7. Each partner will offer specific instructions and promo codes for eligible shoppers to take advantage of the waived delivery fees.
Dive Insight:
DoorDash said it launched the initiative to support senior shoppers who are most at risk amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The waived delivery fees are intended to make grocery delivery, which many consumers see as the safer shopping alternative, more affordable. DoorDash has also added no-contact delivery as an option for shoppers.
Throughout the outbreak, retailers have been mindful of seniors with efforts like special shopping hours, pre-packed groceries, senior discounts and dedicated delivery services. The moves are intended to protect one of the groups most vulnerable to the virus.
In 2018, research showed just 17% of people over age 50 bought groceries online. According to new research from Brick Meets Click and ShopperKit, 39% of shoppers 60 and older reported using online grocery for the first time in the past month. With additional efforts to appeal to this demographic, grocers may see seniors become repeat online grocery shoppers.
DoorDash is expanding its grocery footprint through traditional and e-commerce partnerships. Hy-Vee is the only brick-and-mortar retailer that partners directly with DoorDash, while other grocers participating in the initiative work with e-commerce platforms that use DoorDash for delivery fulfillment.
This move is one of a handful from the grocery industry to waive delivery fees in light of the coronavirus outbreak. Some grocers like Albertsons and H-E-B have waived fees for prescription delivery, but not entire grocery orders. Target has maintained its free four-week Shipt Trial, which launched before the outbreak, and Aldi is offering free delivery on a customer’s first three orders of $35 or more. Last week, H-E-B launched a delivery service for seniors that includes a dedicated phone line for shoppers to call in their orders.
