Target sets sights on Amazon with same-day delivery plans
Target plans to step up its delivery game in a big way come 2018.
The retailer announced the $550 million acquisition of Shipt on Wednesday, adding a company that specializes specifically in same-day delivery to its asset portfolio. In the same announcement, Target also confirmed plans to -- wait for it -- offer same-day delivery to its customers.
The company's announcement lays out a plan to offer speedier deliveries at "about half" of its stores in early 2018. The program is then expected to expand by the 2018 holiday to include most Target stores, in all major markets.
The key takeaway here is the way all of this will be tied to individual stores. Unlike Amazon, which forgoes brick-and-mortar retail in favor of warehouses and third-party retail partners, Target has a vast network of stores housing inventory. In this new setup, Shipt becomes an extension of that, picking up deliveries from local stores and ferrying them to their destinations.
In the early days of the new program, Target same-day delivery will be restricted to groceries, essentials, home electronics, and a handful of other (unidentified) product categories. The goal is to expand that to all products available in Target stores by the end of 2019.
Shipt operates as a subscription-based grocery marketplace, charging $99 per year for unlimited deliveries. When you place an order, the company's "shoppers," as they're called, pick up the items from local stores and deliver them.
The company is really just another product of the ever-growing gig economy. Shipt highlights the fact that shoppers are also responsible for delivery as an advantage of the service. There's even a rating system that's built to pair shoppers with their satisfied past customers.
It's the same premise as ride-sharing services like Lyft or Shipt competitor Postmates. Instead of a big Amazon-like company shipping orders out of warehouses using established delivery services, Shipt relies on regular folks to do customers' shopping on demand.
It sounds like that setup won't be changing much with the acquisition. Shipt will work with Target as a retail partner, giving subscribers a new set of stores to order from. But with Target resources behind it, Shipt will be able to expand more quickly and cover a wider range of products that much sooner.
For the Target customers, it's probably best to look at Shipt as a subscription plan akin to the delivery benefits offered by Amazon Prime. Though that subscription seems like a tough sell in a world where Amazon offers Prime members a range of bonus benefits -- Prime Video, Prime Reading, Twitch Prime -- alongside free same-day delivery.
More details will no doubt be revealed as Target works with Shipt to cement a system that works for both interests. However, there's no denying that this acquisition gives Target a new tool to push back against the looming threat of online delivery services like Amazon, that tend to offer a wider range of products at frequently better prices, for speedy delivery.
Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.
