Uber's food delivery service, Uber Eats, announced that it will now ship nationwide.
Customers across the United States, aside from Alaska and Hawaii, will now be able to have food delivered to their doorsteps from select merchants in Los Angeles, New York, and Miami, Florida.
Uber Eats' Launch Nationwide Delivery
The new feature comes after Uber announced a series of products under its ride-hailing service and delivery service to entice new users. Uber also wants to offer its current customers as many services as possible.
An Uber spokesperson told Engadget that both their customers and merchants requested nationwide shipping.
The new shipping feature will help merchants grow their business, and it will allow customers to get their favorite foods from across the country.
Meanwhile, Uber's delivery service, Uber Freight, which connects customers with local carriers, will not be included in the nationwide shipping feature.
Instead, nationwide shipping will be made possible through FedEx, which will deliver foods within four to five business days.
Starting Tuesday, June 7, Uber Eats customers have access to 15 merchants. Some famous merchants are Bludso's BBQ and Gotta Have S'More in Los Angeles, Sarge's Deli and Wafels & Dinges in New York City, and Sabores Market and Doggi's Arepa Bar in Miami, Florida.
Uber said that it would expand the number of merchants in the future but did not reveal a specific timeline.
Customers who want to place an order can access the product on the Uber Eats app, where nationwide shipping will be featured on the Home screen.
After customers select the merchant of their choice, choose products from the cart and place their orders, they will get an email with FedEx tracking information.
The merchants that want to list their products for nationwide shipping can contact the account manager if they already partner with Uber Eats.
The merchants need to package and ship the products themselves. Uber Eats is there to provide a shipping label and postcard insert with all the instructions required for the customer.
Voice Recording and Autonomous Delivery
According to Restaurant Dive, Uber Eats will add pickup ordering at different stadiums, autonomous pilot delivery, launch voice ordering, and expand its Vouchers program for its customers to use for events and order food or rides.
The announcement was made at Uber Eats' Go/Get 2022 event on May 16. This is the company's way to step up its product enhancements and diversify into new segments as delivery is increasingly profitable.
With these enhancements, Uber Eats can reach more customers and find ways to provide lower-cost deliveries.
As of March, DoorDash continued to dominate the delivery segment with 59% market share, while Uber Eats followed, getting second place with 24% market share, according to Bloomberg.
Grubhub and DoorDash have been dipping their toes into autonomous delivery for years now, while Uber Eats is just starting their programs.
However, Uber Eats seems to be more confident in making big moves into stadiums than its competitors that have yet to go into this space.
Related Article: Uber Eats Pushed By Attorneys General in Two States to be Transparent With Food Costs Upon Checkout
This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by Sophie Webster
