Dive Brief:
- Amid record demand for online groceries, more than 90% of Instacart orders last week were delivered same-day or next-day, according to the company.
- Instacart's customer order volume has surged as much as 500% year-over-year in recent months due to COVID-19, and the average customer basket size has grown more than 35%.
- Additionally, Instacart has announced a partnership with Rite Aid to deliver groceries and healthcare essentials from more than 2,400 locations in 18 states. Delivery will not include prescriptions.
Dive Insight:
For weeks Instacart has fought to keep pace with demand as more shoppers have gone online during the pandemic. In late March and April, waits for Instacart orders were reportedly as long as five days for those who could secure a time slot. Once available slots for the day were filled, customers were turned away.
Now, with company data showing a majority of recent orders arriving within a day or two, it appears Instacart’s recent efforts to catch up are paying off. Instacart has launched two separate hiring sprees with a goal of hiring more than 500,000 new shoppers to help fill orders. It has also launched new ordering features to provide customers with flexibility and reduce wait times.
Other retailers are seeing delivery times normalize as well. Amazon, which was so busy it had to waitlist new customers a month ago, has reportedly brought Prime Pantry back online and stopped waitlisting shoppers in most cities. Some grocers like Walmart and Hy-Vee have turned to paid services to help customers get their online orders faster.
The expansion with Rite-Aid is just one example of recent growth for Instacart. Since March 1, the company said it has expanded or launched with 36 retailers, with delivery now being offered from 2,700 new stores. In addition, Instacart Pickup has expanded to more than 400 new locations in the same timeframe.
