French retailer Carrefour tests Walmart-style home delivery to customers’ fridges in France
The French retailer Carrefour wants to go even further in home delivery and be one of the first retailers in France to offer a unique home delivery service to its customers. Carrefour is currently testing a home delivery service where the Carrefour delivery driver puts the fresh and frozen products in the fridge and freezer of the client. But in order to be eligible for this service, customers must be equipped with a special locking system for their front door.
During the time slot chosen by the customer, the customer unblocks a temporary access to their door for the delivery driver and is warned when they enter their home. The delivery person pus away the fresh and frozen products in the refrigerator and freezer of the person being delivered. The dry goods are placed on the counter. The delivery driver then takes a photograph of the stored groceries and sends it to the Carrefour customer by SMS.
This innovation aims to provide an additional service and to differentiate itself from traditional home delivery, a market that is worth almost 10 billion euros in France and is dominated by delivery platforms such as Uber Eats and Deliveroo. As far as retailers are concerned, the drive remains the dominant method of collecting goods online, but home delivery has made strong progress in France since Covid-19.
But the necessary installation of a special locking system for the front door leaves one wondering about the complications that can arise and the costs which are associated with it. Nothing has yet been communicated about the cost of this delivery service and the amount that will have to be paid to have access to it. Which leaves one wondering how truly inclusive this service will be to customers.
Although this service has already proved to be a success in the United States, retailer Walmart has already been offering this service, to its customers since 2019 but testing started in 2017. In addition to a door locking system that customers must also authorise, Walmart employees wear cameras to provide proof of their service and avoid possible suspicions of theft or damage to the customer’s home.
The necessary installation of the secure lock does not seem to pose a problem for customers. In fact, in January 2022, Walmart announced that their home delivery to customers’ fridges called InHome would be available to 30 million households, compared to 6 million households previously. As a result of this expansion a further 3,000 employees are planned to be hired to support the expansion of the service. Despite scepticism, home delivery to customers’ fridges might soon be common to everyone.