Amazon launches Instant Pickup service to compete with convenience stores.
Having spent the last few days moving into a new apartment, I've made about twenty or so trips to local stores to get the one last thing I think I'll need. Whether it has been hand soap, various ingredients for different recipes, or more of those 3M Command hooks than I thought possible, I've spent a lot of time in different store aisles.
Amazon launched a service that would have been perfect for me. Amazon Instant Pickup is another service for Prime and Prime Student subscribers to pick from certain convenience items that can then be picked up within two minutes at a nearby pickup location. Of course, Amazon is also offering their Alexa-powered devices for when you really have to have your smart speaker right this second. The service is launching in Los Angeles and Berkeley California, Columbus Ohio, Atlanta Georgia, and College Park Maryland. From Amazon:
Amazon today introduced Instant Pickup, a free service offering Prime and Prime Student members a curated selection of daily essentials available for pickup in two minutes or less at five of Amazon's fully staffed pickup locations in Los Angeles, Atlanta, Berkeley, Calif., Columbus, Ohio, and College Park, Md. Items available with Instant Pickup include snacks, drinks and electronics, as well as some of Amazon's most popular devices.
"Instant Pickup is another way Amazon is making life more convenient for Prime members," said Ripley MacDonald, Director, Student Programs, Amazon. "As shopping behaviors continue to evolve, customers consistently tell us that they want items even faster. Whether it's a snack on-the-go, replacing a lost phone charger in the middle of a hectic day or adding Alexa to your life with an Echo, Instant Pickup saves Prime members time. While Instant Pickup is available at select pickup locations today, we're excited about bringing this experience to more customers soon."
With Instant Pickup, Prime and Prime Student members can use the Amazon App to shop hundreds of need-it-now items like food, cold drinks, personal care items, technology essentials and Amazon devices like the Echo, Echo Dot, Fire TV and a selection of Fire tablets and Kindle e-readers. Prime members can browse the selection, place an order, even add last-minute items to an online order and pick it up from a self-service locker – all within two minutes or less.
Instant Pickup is available at five select pickup locations beginning today and will be available at more locations in the coming months. Amazon operates a total of 22 staffed pickup locations on or near college campuses across the country. All Amazon customers can ship their orders to a pickup location, and Prime members receive Free Same-Day and One-Day delivery on millions of items. Plus, returns are always free.
For more information about Instant Pickup, visit www.amazon.com/InstantPickup or, if Instant Pickup is available at a location near you, tap the menu button at the top of the Amazon App, then look for Instant Pickup in Programs and Features.
Are you going to use Amazon Instant Pickup? Let us know down below!
Reader comments
Amazon launches Instant Pickup service
It certainly sounds like a good idea, would like to see the results in a few months time though, just to make sure that people are happy with it.
I love the idea, but the 35 minute drive to get it kind of negates the point for me, unless I'm already going to be in the area.
For food is great though, I'll let my brother know about it.
I guess getting a cold drink is cool? I really don't understand how this is that much faster than just walking into a convenience store. Perhaps it's more discrete when you're buying potentially embarrassing items? To me, the whole point of Amazon is not having to leave my house to actually go somewhere. If they had a truck that brought cold drinks to my front door, now THAT would be cool.
Yeah...about the only advantage I can see to this is knowing that what you want will be there when you arrive. Otherwise, I'm happy with Prime Now for my "must have it right away" purchases.
People think amazon is the end all for everything, I guess if they dont like their coke they will want to return it for a full refund and screw the seller somehow.
College students know how to scam anything and lie lie to get what they want, free item plus their money back! Wait till they get a real job in the real world and get told NO! they will want to run to their safe space in the fetal position and crap and piss their pants, amazing how useless these kids are today but boy they can text others like crazy
Dude, relax and let your blood pressure return to normal.
Personally, I don't get this business model, either, but Amazon is going to try it. It may be that they're looking to get these distribution centers up and running in anticipation of offering local delivery, but, until they get a delivery network set up, they'll do this as a way to gauge interest in buying small-value items from them. I could see this turning into the kind of service Kozmo offered, where you could buy pretty much anything and have it delivered. I'm not sure why Amazon could succeed where Kozmo couldn't, but, should they go this route, we shall see.
sigh.
"amazing how useless these kids are today" has been said by every single previous generation.
Every time you lump all of a group together and make a claim about it, you are inevitably going to be mistaken about some.
Did they walk on your lawn?
L. M. A. O 😂
Otherwise known as, a store.
So it's basically a vending machine
This might not do well.
Part of convenience store shopping is that I don't know *exactly* what I need (which brand, which price point, what's fresh today?)... but I do know I need that product "right now." E.g., got a headache and I might buy a single serve pack of tylenol, grabbing a last minute birthday card on the way to a party, grabbing soap because I ran out that morning but need some when I get home, etc...
To me it would be more efficient to walk into a store and then determine exactly which product I actually wanted to buy. I can see the argument being made for doing the "shopping" part from your desk at work first, but it feels like an extra step if I'm also going to have to walk into the store anyway.
I'd like to try it out and see how it works. It's a neat concept , too bad I don't live by one
make it drive thru and win. Gallon of milk and beer offerings will cover a lot.
You can sort of do this already at best buy. I ordered online, went to the store, showed them my confirmation barcode and ID, and walked out with my product. It was ready before I could get to the store.