Kroger Co. (No. 17 in the Internet Retailer 2019 Top 1000) and other retailers are offering consumers new ways to buy alcoholic beverages online.
Kroger and technology vendor Drinks Holdings Inc. added a “build-your-own pack” feature to the Kroger Wine online service, allowing shoppers to create customized packs of six or 12 bottles of wine, Kroger says.
Kroger also plans to launch alcohol delivery via Instacart in two additional states—Texas and Virginia—by the end of 2019, according to a spokeswoman. Currently, Kroger offers alcohol delivery by Instacart, an app-based delivery service, in nine states. In some markets, Kroger also provides at-store pickup of alcohol ordered online, she says.
Kroger started its wine service in 14 states in late 2018 using the Drinks platform, specialized “wine-as-a-service” software designed for wine-shipping services. Kroger says the launch of Kroger Wine established it as the first major grocery retailer to offer a ship-to-home wine service. The service is now available in 19 states and Washington, D.C., representing 58 million households, Kroger says.
Kroger operates nearly 2,800 retail stores in 35 states. To purchase wine, shoppers visit wine.kroger.com. After confirming their delivery state and legal drinking age, they can create a custom pack. Wines range in price from $10 to $16 per bottle with no additional shipping fees for home delivery, the retailer says.
In other recent alcohol-related news:
- Beverages & More Inc., operator of nearly 170 BevMo! Liquor stores in California, Arizona and Washington, said it would expand its partnership with on-demand alcohol delivery service Drizly. Drizly will deliver from 10 BevMo! stores in the Sacramento area. With the additional stores, Drizly now delivers from 55 BevMo! stores, all in California.
- Grocery store chain Aldi this month made wine and beer delivery available nationwide via Instacart, Aldi says. Since Aldi began grocery delivery with Instacart in 2017, the retailer has significantly increased the number of locations offering delivery. Today, shoppers of nearly all Aldi stores—in more than 10,000 ZIP codes—have access to delivery by Instacart, the retailer says.
- Last month, Walmart Inc. (No. 3) launched at-store pickup of alcoholic beverages ordered online from 2,000 locations in 29 states. Walmart says it began delivering alcohol from 200 stores in California and Florida and plans to add the service to additional stores over time.