Another day, another report of a new ambitious initiative by ride-hailing company Uber. This time: same-day delivery for retailers.
Uber, which made its name “delivering” people and has recently begun to deliver meals, may soon expand to big retailers and fashion brands, according to a report from Re/Code, citing anonymous sources. The program is to be unveiled this fall, possibly in September or early October, and will start in New York City. Partnerships with San Francisco retailers could be announced at the same time, or soon after, the report said.
Customers will be able to request a same-day delivery when buying from partner retailers, although not through Uber’s app, at least initially, according to the report. TechCrunch reported in April that the company was piloting or in talks with more than 400 retailers about the program.
Uber is also said to be in talks with sellers of e-commerce tools, like Shopify and Bigcommerce, to make its service available to their merchant customers. This could be similar to the way Uber’s lets third-party companies integrate its ride booking engine into their websites and apps.
Although Uber hasn’t been shy about its ambitions to push into logistics, from delivering lunch, to a small messenger service, it will face stiff competition. Companies like Postmates and Deliv have long been perfecting their businesses in the space, and Apple apparently turned down Uber’s bid to deliver its merchandise, opting for Postmates instead.
For more on Uber’s food delivery service in NYC, watch this Coins2Day video: