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Walmart has partnered with smart box manufacturer HomeValet to facilitate the delivery of perishable food items. The system offers great advantages for both the consumer and the supermarket chain.
Pilot project
The first test will start this spring in Bentonville, where the retail giant has its headquarters. Customers who participate in the programme will receive a smart box from Homevalet. This ‘smart storage box’ has three temperature-controlled compartments, so that frozen, chilled and stock items remain fresh in it. The delivery driver will be able to communicate with the HomeValet to open it and leave the groceries inside.
As with Walmart’s current delivery platform, customers order groceries in the retailer’s app and schedule a delivery time. The big advantage is of course that the customer does not have to stay at home to receive the groceries. For Walmart, the delivery options then become much greater. “While we don’t have plans to do 24/7 delivery today, it certainly has a nice ring to it,” Walmart added with a quip.
Boost
Since the outbreak of the corona crisis, grocery delivery in the United States has skyrocketed, writes Business Insider. According to retail data specialist Inmar Intelligence, almost 80% of consumers surveyed bought groceries online at least once during the pandemic. More than half of the respondents also said that they had ordered groceries more often than before the crisis. Amazon even saw demand for online groceries triple in one year.
