The company announced today that it is expanding its service that will deliver groceries directly to your refrigerator. Walmart InHome delivery service allows customers to place grocery orders online, then have a Walmart associate enter their home to deliver the groceries, by way of a smart lock. The service was initially tested in a small number of markets, including Kansas City, Pittsburgh and Vero Beach, and is now available to 6 million households across the U.S.
Upcoming launches in major markets like Dallas, Nashville, L.A., Chicago, Houston, Indianapolis, and others.
Walmart plans to hire more than 3000 delivery drivers over the course of the year. It will build out a fleet of 100% all-electric delivery vans which will be used to make the deliveries, while simultaneously marketing the service in the neighborhoods being served.
The $19.95 per month price of the InHome service makes it more appropriate for customers who work outside the home during the day or who travel, and want their groceries put away while they are out.
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It may seem odd to have a delivery person enter your home to stock your fridge, but the InHome service addresses a major consumer complaint with online grocery delivery, which is that you have to be at home in order to put your cold and frozen groceries in your fridge.
Walmart grocery competitors like Shipt and Instacart don't offer a solution for keeping customers' cold items insulated beyond double-bagging items, at the shopper's discretion. The shoppers for these services only use the paper or plastic bags provided by the store at checkout, and there is no system for exchanging insulated bags or boxes at the time of delivery or using some sort of insulated cooler at the customer's home. If left out for too long on a hot day, customers will sometimes find their ice cream melted or other cold items spoiled. It isComplicating because the services don't always deliver at the time you specify, meaning the deliveries could arrive too early or late to be convenient.
Walmart can better manage delivery on its end by offering an in- home service. It sells customers on the usefulness of having the last mile handled, as well as the last steps between doorstep and fridge or kitchen countertop.
Tom Ward, Walmart's senior vice president of last-mile delivery, said convenience was the leading factor for customers. The ultimate convenience is to come home and find all the items you bought waiting for you at home, because people love to get on doing the things they want to do, and they don't always want to wait at home for deliveries.
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The other perks that come with a subscription are appreciated by InHome customers.
Walmart+ is a competitor to Amazon Prime that offers free shipping and more. InHome customers can leave items on the counter at Walmart for the InHome delivery driver to take back to the store. Ward said this is only the beginning.
He explained that they had tried to think through what conveniences customers really want to experience. Walmart plans to integrate its prescription delivery business with InHome, which is already being teased on the InHome website.
The delivery process inside the home is the same as it was at launch.
The delivery driver wears a video camera on his uniform. Walmart collaborated with Level Home for its front door smart entry technology and had previously collaborated with Nortek Security & Control for its garage door smart entry technology. The retrofit kit is for overhead garage door openers.
Walmart customers can use their existing smart lock or garage keypad as an alternative if they choose to.
The delivery associate can enter the home with a one-time access code provided in the InHome app. The customer is notifies by the app that the delivery has begun and that the associate is wearing a camera. The customer can see the delivery in its entirety via the InHome app. It is meant to eliminate any security concerns about allowing an unknown person into the home when the customer is away. The delivery associate puts the food away while wearing a mask and then locks up the surfaces they used.
Walmart says that the video recording can be accessed up to a week after each delivery. Customers begin to trust the process after a few uses, like a house cleaner or dog walker, similar to how they may grow to trust other service personnel who are provided with a door code.
The company requires a minimum of one year of employment to move up to the new associate delivery driver position.
Walmart says it is now creating the role of associate delivery driver as a full-time position that pays an extra $1.50 per hour more than most of its in-store roles. These employees are eligible for company benefits like medical, vision, and dental insurance, as well as Walmart's Live Better U program which pays for a college degree. The retailer says it will initially fill the new positions through internal promotions, and staff will be trained both in-person and using virtual reality experiences.
Most of the associate delivery drivers who are already doing this work have an average tenure of over five years with the company. Walmart expects to fill the positions that employees are vacating in order to grow its overall workforce.
More than 300,000 associates were promoted into roles of greater responsibility and higher pay in FY 21.
Walmart will support its goal of operating a zero-emissions logistics fleet by 2040 with the help of 1,396 EV charging stations at stores and clubs across 41 U.S. states, the company said.
Walmart is going to detail its partnership efforts on the EV front in a separate announcement.
