Today in the Connected Economy: DoorDash Branches Out to Offer Office Supplies

Today in the connected economy, DoorDash adds office supplies to its delivery option through a partnership with Office Depot.

Also: credit processor Zeta inks a global partnership with Mastercard, mobile wallet provider Citcon expands to Korea and Japan and post-purchase platform Narvar lets people make returns from home.

DoorDash Announces on-Demand Office Supply Delivery

DoorDash is venturing into office supply delivery, the latest example of food delivery aggregators diversifying to improve the economics of their business models.

The company is working with Office Depot to offer delivery from more than 1,000 Office Depot and OfficeMax locations, making more than 10,000 of the office supply retailer’s products are available on DoorDash’s marketplaces.

“As we continue to expand into new categories to meet consumers’ need for convenience, we are thrilled to add Office Depot as our premier office and business and learning solutions retailer on the DoorDash platform,” DoorDash Vice President of business development Shanna Prevé said in a statement.

Mastercard, Zeta Team on Next-Gen Credit Processing for FIs, FinTechs

Zeta, a company that provides credit card processing to financial institutions (FIs) and FinTechs, has signed a five year global partnership with Mastercard.

The agreement will see the firms jointly launch credit cards with issuers worldwide on Zeta’s application programming interface-ready credit processing network.

“With Zeta’s next-gen credit card processing platform, we are fundamentally rewiring how issuers launch credit card programs by offering new paradigms over legacy mainframe systems,” Zeta CEO Bhavin Turakhia said in the announcement.

Citcon Brings eCommerce Payments to South Korea, Japan

California-based mobile wallet payment provider Citcon has its eyes set across the Pacific, announcing it has expanded its global footprint to South Korea and Japan.

eCommerce sales in Asia-Pacific totaled almost $3 trillion last year, Citcon said, with Japan and Korea representing the fourth- and fifth-largest markets for online purchases worldwide, and the second- and third-largest in the region behind China.

“We are enabling merchants to enter global markets where eCommerce is expanding rapidly, yet market participation requires a localized payments solution,” Citcon CEO Chuck Huang said in a statement.

Post-Purchase Platform Narvar Launches Home Pickup

Post-purchase platform Narvar has unveiled Home Pickup, a “carrier agnostic” return service that lets shoppers schedule a courier to pickup return packages from their homes.

“More than 70 retailers, including DSW and Ann Taylor, piloted the service during the busy 2021 holiday season and reported high customer satisfaction scores and speedier return times,” Narvar said in a news release. “Home Pickup makes it easier for shoppers to return items without having to leave home, and enables brands to restock returned products faster.”

Narvar says the service is available in 10 major metropolitan markets with plans to go nationwide as it expands to about 100 markets over the coming months.

Airtel, Axis Grow India’s Digital Ecosystem Together

India’s communications solutions provider Bharti Airtel has teamed up with Axis Bank to – as Airtel puts it – “strengthen the growth of India’s digital ecosystem through a range of financial solutions.”

In a bid to increase adoption of digital payments in the country, over the coming months, Airtel and Axis will launch a range of financial products and digital services — including a co-branded credit card and buy now, pay later (BNPL) offerings — and roll them out to Airtel’s 340 million-plus customers.

The two firms debuted the Airtel Axis Bank Credit Card, which comes with cash back capabilities, discounts, digital vouchers and free services to Airtel customers.