Walgreens Takes on Convenience Stores With 24/7 Delivery

When you need baby formula at 3 a.m., options are limited. Or rather, they were.

Announcement of Walgreens 24-Hour Same Day Delivery on Thursday (Dec. 1) marks a turning point in anytime access, offering 27,000 retail items from the chain, and Stefanie Kruse, Walgreens vice president of digital commerce, told PYMNTS’ Karen Webster it’s just a start.

“The service happens on our platforms,” Kruse said. “The customers will access this offering through walgreens.com and through our mobile app. Team members in our stores will pick and pack the orders, and then couriers ultimately deliver those orders for us. We partner with DoorDash and Uber on the delivery piece of it.”

Saying the rollout was tested “in the dark” for some time to ensure that technology and service levels are up to snuff, Kruse said some products stood out even in the test phase.

She said orders center on “a lot of things like OTC and health and wellness products in the middle of the night. Baby products, diaper rash ointment, for example. Even consumables for people needing snacks in the middle of the night for night shifts that they work.”

Prescriptions are not eligible as part of the new off-hours delivery service, but she said, “We do offer a same-day delivery service for prescriptions. We also offer next-day and two-day delivery for prescriptions and mail order as well.” But not for this initiative at this time.

See also: Walgreens Launches 24/7 Same-Day Delivery Service

Convenience Is Key

There’s a fee for the service, and Kruse told Webster that “pricing varies by market. We set pricing across the country based on the market, so that varies by location slightly.”

Another finding from pre-launch testing was that customers appreciate the service, knowing they can have that milk, coffee, and sugar they forgot delivered before morning.

“We see good repeat behavior when customers use this because they’re really pleased with the offering,” Kruse said.

“It’s a really delightful service and it meets a need that customers have in a pinch. We’re a last-minute destination, and we’re known for convenience. Being able to really be there at a time of need for our patients and customers is what we aim to do. This really helps us do that, and in more meaningful ways now.”

Dispelling a common misconception, it doesn’t matter if the Walgreens nearest you is open 24 hours or not. “The good thing about this offering is that as long as you’re within the delivery radius, you’re still able to use it,” she said. “While it may not be your closest Walgreens, as long as you’re within the delivery radius of that 24-hour store, you’ll be able to get a delivery.”

It won’t stop here, as Kruse hinted at forthcoming “ways that we can make this offering and our other offerings even more convenient. I can’t really disclose any specific things that we’re working on right now, but we are thinking of ways to continue to deliver on the customer promise around the clock in the most convenient ways possible.”

See also: Walgreens Rolls Out 30-Min Pickup Option

The Progression of Retail Delivery

The new Walgreens 24-Hour Same Day Delivery “is a continued progression of the company’s convenient shopping solutions for customers. In November 2020, Walgreens launched Pickup in as little as 30 minutes in-store, curbside, and via drive-thru and Same Day Delivery in as little as one hour beginning in May 2021,” per a press release.

“As the company continues to enhance the customer experience, Walgreens is currently piloting a 30-Minute Pickup Guarantee that covers the cost of shoppers’ baskets in New Mexico, Oklahoma, and select Texas markets if the order is not ready for pickup within 30 minutes,” it said.

Kruse told Webster that “We’re building upon our existing one-hour delivery offering with this, and it’s really aiming to make our patients’ and customers’ lives easier. This is the first 24-hour delivery in the health and wellness space, and the largest assortment offering 24 hours across the country.”

Members of the myWalgreens free loyalty program can earn and redeem Walgreens Cash rewards, “as well as use personalized digital coupons and saving offerings” with the new service.

The retailer is celebrating the launch by offering customers free delivery on orders of $20 or more using promo code NOW20 through Dec. 10. Though not yet available in Alaska, Colorado, Iowa, Maine, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming, she hinted at more iterations that may bring such services anywhere a 24-hour Walgreens is found.