Good news for impatient holiday shoppers: retail giant Walmart is in the middle of launching same-day delivery of thousands of products. Bad news: it’s only a test going off in select cities for now.
According to the AP, somewhere around 5,000 different products are going to be available for same-day delivery this holiday season. Walmart kicked off the test program around the D.C. area on October 2nd, and moved on the Philadelphia a couple of days later. Today, they’re expanding it to Minneapolis, and later this month will take it to San Jose and San Francisco.
Here’s how it will work: For a flat fee of $10, customers can have an unlimited number of items shipped to their doorstep in a matter of hours. Except for customers in California, there is also no minimum purchase charge (it’s $45 in San Jose and San Francisco). To receive same-day delivery, customers must place their orders by noon. They will then be able to choose one of three four-hour windows to receive their merchandise that day. Products will be coming from local stores.
This test is an expansion of Walmart To-Go, their grocery delivery service.
Of course, Walmart is trying to compete in a market of online retailers like Amazon, who have already opened up same-day shipping in a number of locations.
“This builds on a testament to try to provide greater convenience to our customers,” said Walmart spokeswoman Amy Lester. “This is truly to learn and better understand what our customers want.”
Customers wants quick delivery. And in order to get that, $10 doesn’t sound all that bad – especially on a bulk order. Whether or not we see the option expand to more cities across the country most likely depends on its popularity in these test cities during the lucrative Christmas shopping season.