Walmart partners with Postmates to expand online grocery delivery

Walmart announced Tuesday that it has partnered with Postmates to expand its online grocery store orders, with the goal of reaching more than 40% of U.S. households.

The new deal will roll out in Charlotte, North Carolina, with plans to expand in other areas across the country in the coming months.

Mark Ibbotson, executive vice president of central operations at Walmart U.S., said the move is part of the company’s mission to make grocery shopping even easier for its customers around the country.

Additionally, the deal will help further escalate the retailer’s battle to keep up with e-commerce giant Amazon, who in March expanded its free two-hour delivery service from its Whole Foods Market stores through Prime Now to Atlanta and San Francisco. But Walmart’s service, however, does come with a fee of $9.95 with a $30 minimum order but no subscriptions are needed.

Dan Mosher, senior vice president of merchant lead at Postmates, said with its growing fleet of 160,000 couriers around the country, they’re confident that they have the manpower to bring the ultimate convenience to all Walmart customers.

Walmart said that personal shoppers for their new program must complete a three-week training program “learning how to select the freshest produce and the best cuts of meat” for its online grocery customers.

In March, Walmart first announced its plan to expand its grocery delivery business for online orders to 800 stores by year’s end. The retailer initially said it planned to work with Uber and Deliv, among other partners, to provide transportation.

Additionally, Walmart also offers its customers an online grocery pickup service that allows shoppers to order their groceries online and pick them up in stores with ever getting out of their cars. That service is already available in 1,200 stores, with plans to expand to 1,000 more this year.