Walgreens, Postmates Team For New York On-Demand Delivery

To provide on-demand delivery for shoppers looking for health and wellness products, Walgreens and Postmates have announced a collaboration. Postmates will deliver hundreds of the pharmacy retailer’s items from 174 Walgreens and Duane Reade locations in Brooklyn and Manhattan, the companies said in an announcement.

Walgreens Chief Merchandising Officer Joe Hartsig said in the announcement, “We share Postmates’ commitment to providing customers with convenient, differentiated shopping experiences, and together we can help ensure our customers are getting what they need, when they need it. Particularly as we head into the peak season for flu, being able to bring our customers convenience items, as well as cough and cold relief directly to their home, can take the stress out of being sick.”

Postmates’ on-demand delivery service, combined with Walgreens’ scale, “will allow both businesses to better meet the needs of their customers,” according to the announcement. Postmates also discovered that its shoppers seek out many of the products found at Walgreens. The top items ordered by New Yorkers are San Pellegrino, Smart Water, Gatorade, Pedialyte and Tylenol.

Over the last flu season, from August 2018 to January 2019, Postmates saw a 173 percent spike in orders for cough relief items. It also saw a 50 percent rise in soup orders and a 111 percent jump in sinus relief aids.

Postmates VP of Merchant Business Development Craig Whitmer said in the announcement, “In the last year, orders from convenience and drugstores have increased by 68 percent. By collaborating with Walgreens, we are able to provide our customers with even more convenience when it comes to everyday items that they need now.”

In separate news, Postmates has raised $225 million at a $2.4 billion valuation as it prepares to go public, per reports in September. The investment, which was led by GPI Capital, brings the firm’s total funding amount to almost $1 billion to date. For its investments, GPI takes non-controlling stakes somewhere in the range of 2 to 20 percent.