Kroger Rolls Out New Grocery Delivery Offering

Amid its digital push through its Restock Kroger initiative, Kroger has rolled out a delivery service dubbed Kroger Ship that uses third-party carriers. The offering will debut in Houston, Louisville, Nashville and Kroger’s hometown of Cincinnati, Chain Store Age reported

“Kroger Ship is our next step in creating a seamless experience that allows our customers to shop when and how they want,” Chief Digital Officer Yael Cosset said in an announcement. “Our new service is just one more way we are redefining the customer experience as part of Restock Kroger, bringing more convenience and options to shoppers across America.”

With the service, consumers can buy 4,500 private-label products from the retailer, which are not otherwise available online, along with 50,000 different grocery items and household products. The choices were informed by data from Kroger’s 84.51° customer insights division. As the service rolls out, Kroger is offering customers a discount with a one-time promo code.

The news comes as Kroger announced that it is partnering with tech company Nuro for the pilot of an on-road, fully autonomous delivery service for customers. Through the partnership between America’s largest supermarket retailer and the maker of the world’s first fully unmanned road vehicle, customers can place same-day delivery orders through Kroger’s ClickList ordering system and Nuro’s app. During the test, orders will be delivered by Nuro’s fleet of autonomous vehicles.

“As part of Restock Kroger, we have already started to redefine the grocery customer experience and expand the coverage area for our anything, anytime and anywhere offering,” Cosset said. “Partnering with Nuro, a leading technology company, will create customer value by providing Americans access to fast and convenient delivery at a fair price.”

The Kroger tie-up is reportedly the first application and deployment of Nuro’s hardware and software. In terms of geography, the pilot market will be announced soon and the service is expected to launch in the fall.