US retailer Walmart has extended its drone delivery service with Wing, in what the companies are calling the “world’s largest drone delivery expansion ever”.
From next year, Walmart customers will be able to access drone delivery services at an additional 100 stores across several major US metros, including Atlanta, Charlotte, Houston, Orlando and Tampa. The service will also be expanded to additional stores in Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW), where Wing and Walmart already serve customers from 18 Supercenters.
“The popularity of drone delivery in DFW is a testament not just to its convenience, but to the way this technology quickly becomes a part of everyday life,” commented Wing CEO Adam Woodworth. “Walmart has been a strong partner that shares our commitment to innovation and is equally eager to bring this new type of service to many more households.”
According to Walmart, it already has the largest drone delivery footprint of any US retailer. Greg Cathey, SVP, Walmart US transformation and innovation, confirmed, “As we look ahead, drone delivery will remain a key part of our commitment to redefining retail. We’re pushing the boundaries of convenience to better serve our customers, making shopping faster and easier than ever before.
“This expansion of our drone delivery service marks a significant milestone in that journey. As the first retailer to scale drone delivery, Walmart is once again demonstrating its commitment to leveraging technology to enhance our delivery offerings with a focus on speed.”
This expansion comes 18 months after Wing and Walmart launched their first location together in the autumn of 2023. Since then, they’ve expanded around the Dallas-Fort Worth area, covering a population area of nearly two million people.
Wing and Walmart are completing thousands of weekly deliveries, with an average fulfillment time of less than 19 minutes.
“This is real drone delivery at scale,” Woodworth said. “People all around the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex have made drone delivery part of their normal shopping habits over the past year. Now we’re excited to share this ultra-fast delivery experience with millions more people across many more US cities.”
In related news, UK parcel delivery company DPD has developed a tailored end-to-end robotic warehouse automation solution in partnership with Deus Robotics to enable warehouse operators to focus on more high-level, value-adding and less physically demanding work. Read the full story here