Britain’s Co-operative Group has introduced autonomous home delivery robots in Northampton in association with Starship Technologies.
Initially, around 5,000 households will have access to the service from the Co-op food store in Wootton Fields.
The robots will travel up to three miles from the store for deliveries in the Wootton and Hardingstone areas, the retailer added.
Co-op also offers robot deliveries from eight of its stores in and around Milton Keynes.
'Quality And Value'
Head of eCommerce at Co-op, Chris Conway, said, “We have seen big changes in e-commerce this year with new customers using the channel that have never used it before, and seeing the benefits.
“Offering quality and value quickly, easily and conveniently is core to Co-op’s approach - delivering what our members and customers want, when and where they need it.”
Customers will have the option to choose from a range of more than 1,000 food and drink items from Co-op on the Starship Food Delivery app.
The service requires shoppers to share the delivery location by dropping a pin on an interactive map.
They are then able to monitor the journey of the robot in real-time, Co-op added.
The service alerts customers when the robot arrives, and they can then unlock their purchases.
'The Next Step'
Head of UK Operations at Starship Technologies, Andrew Curtis, added, “We are thrilled to expand our service in the UK and bring robot delivery to neighbourhoods across Northampton.
“We have been humbled by the fantastic reception to our robots from local communities in Milton Keynes over the last two and a half years. This is the next step in our growth ambitions as Starship looks to further roll out our services across the UK following increasing demand during the pandemic.”
The retailer added that it has ramped up its same-day online and click-and-collect grocery services.
It plans to offer both services from more than 1,000 stores by the end of this year.
© 2020 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
