Costco and Kroger Tap Instacart to Offer Faster Delivery

The delivery company announced Wednesday (June 18) new fulfillment options for retailers such as Costco, Kroger, Harmons and Woodman’s.

“We’re focused on helping retailers increase availability and speed, while giving customers more same-day options no matter how they choose to shop,” said Ryan Hamburger, vice president of retail partnerships at Instacart.

“By introducing flexible fulfillment offerings like Priority Delivery, retailers can meet the demand for convenience while unlocking potential incremental volume,” Hamburger added. “Whether it’s faster delivery, full-service shopping, or scalable last-mile support, we’re committed to powering the tools our partners need to grow and serve their customers on their own terms.”

Priority Delivery is an offering through Costco, which is expanding its shopping options on sameday.costco.com, its Instacart-powered eCommerce platform.

There is No-Rush Delivery, which lets Costco members schedule orders hours or days in advance and earn added savings by being flexible with their delivery window. Customers who need items faster can turn to Priority Delivery and get their items in as fast as 30 minutes.

Kroger, meanwhile, is introducing Express Delivery, offering grocery delivery in as quickly as 30 minutes from the Kroger app and website.

The release also highlighted the Instacart’s Storefront Pro technology, which lets retailers integrate Instacart’s fulfillment capabilities into their eCommerce platform.

“Customers shop as usual directly on retailers’ websites and apps, select a time slot, and Instacart handles the rest – from picking and packing to last-mile delivery. Retailers like Harmons and Woodman’s use our Storefront Pro technology to power their digital storefronts end-to-end,” the release said.

The new offerings come weeks after Instacart introduced Will Call Delivery, a tool designed to help distributors close gaps in their supply chains, letting them meet same-day “fill-in” orders — otherwise known as “hot shot” deliveries.

“For more than a decade, Instacart has built its reputation on delivering grocery orders to households nationwide in as fast as an hour,” the company said in its announcement. “With Will Call Delivery, we’re bringing that expertise to distributors and business operators in need of rapid fulfillment, offering a seamless, same-day solution for the most urgent supply needs.”

More recently, Instacart launched a partnership with Pinterest, letting that platform become directly shoppable via Instacart. Pinterest users can then complete a purchase with a few clicks and have their products delivered in as little as 30 minutes.