Target spends $550 million on same-day delivery firm
In another move to keep up with Amazon.com, Target is paying $550 million to acquire a same-day delivery firm. The Alabama company is called Shipt — pronounced like "shipped" — and provides same-day grocery delivery in some 70 cities.
Target plans to steadily expand Shipt to deliver just about everything in its stores by the 2019 holiday season, said Target spokesperson Eddie Baeb.
"Same-day delivery is something that is gaining in popularity," he said. "We're really excited that we can do same-day delivery and get it to the breadth of our assortment."
With Shipt, there's a $99 fee for unlimited deliveries of orders of $35 or more. The people working for Shipt pick orders in-store and deliver them. The people who fulfill and deliver the orders also accept tips.
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Customers ordering through Shipt would pay the same prices charged customers shopping in Target stores.
Target will phase out the Instacart same-day delivery service available in the Twin Cities and two other markets.
Consultant Carol Spieckerman said the acquisition is a good move.
"It's a big step in the right direction in terms of accelerating Target's ability to deliver products to its customers much more conveniently," Spieckerman said.