Next-day shipping is old news. Now, it's all about hours — or minutes
Major US retailers like Walmart, Target, and Home Depot are shifting their logistics strategy to offer delivery within three hours or less. This trend is driven by consumer demand for instant gratification and the strategic use of physical stores as e-commerce fulfillment hubs.
Why it matters
The move toward hyper-fast delivery redefines retail competition and supply chain management, forcing companies to invest heavily in local infrastructure to meet new consumer expectations.
Bloomberg/Getty Images Forget two-day delivery; major retailers are racing to get your orders out in hours or even minutes. Walmart, Target, Kroger, and Home Depot have all recently stepped up deliveries in three hours or less. US shoppers have shown they want their stuff now — and are willing to pay for it. US shoppers want their stuff faster, and more retailers are responding with delivery options that would have been almost unthinkable a few years ago. Comments this week from Target, Walmart, and Home Depot show that a new benchmark of three hours or less is emerging for customers willing to pay an express fee. "The whole joke about doing five or six trips to the hardware store for every project, hopefully that can be a thing of the past," supply chain consultant Ralph Asher told Business Insider.
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