Walmart to offer home delivery of groceries in 100 cities by year's end by partnering with delivery companies using contract workers, starting with Uber
Retailer to partner with delivery startups after Amazon, Kroger and others roll out similar services
Context & Ripple Effects
This announcement scales what began as a small experiment: Walmart's Denver and Phoenix pilot with Uber and Lyft in 2016, which followed a Sam's Club test with Deliv in Miami. The difference now is scope — 100 cities by year's end — and the trigger is competitive, with Amazon and Kroger already rolling out comparable home-delivery services.
The bet is that Walmart can rent last-mile capacity from gig-economy platforms rather than build its own fleet, turning its store network into fulfillment nodes. The later arc matters too: those early Uber and Lyft ties were quietly wound down within two years, before Walmart pivoted to its own InHome refrigerator-drop service — so this 100-city push sits at the start of a learn-fast cycle in Walmart's delivery strategy.
First-order effects
- Walmart gains grocery home delivery across 100 cities without capital investment in vehicles or drivers, matching Amazon and Kroger's service footprint ahead of the holiday season.
- Uber secures high-frequency grocery volume for its contract drivers, deepening its role as infrastructure for retail rather than just passenger transport.
Second-order effects
- Kroger and regional grocers face pressure to secure their own third-party delivery capacity or partner with rival platforms, tightening supply of gig-driver networks and likely raising per-order delivery costs.
- Delivery startups become gatekeepers between retailers and customers, giving platforms like Uber leverage over pricing and data as more chains outsource their last mile.
Third-order effects
- If rented gig fleets prove unreliable or uneconomic — as Walmart's later exit from the Uber and Lyft deals suggests — large retailers will pull delivery in-house, favoring scale players who can own the full chain from store shelf to doorstep.
- Grocery retail structurally splits into retailers that treat last-mile delivery as a core competency versus those renting it, with the former able to control cost, quality, and customer data end to end.
The trend: US grocery retail is racing to add home delivery by renting gig-economy fleets first and building owned logistics second, with Amazon's expansion forcing every major chain to pick a last-mile strategy.