eBay is to buy 90-minute delivery specialist Shutl as it develops its local delivery options.
The acquisition deepens eBay’s expertise and capacity in local delivery and collection. eBay recently unveiled a Click and Collect trial service through Argos and has said it would expand eBay Now, its local delivery service, to London, among .
The eBay Now service enables the delivery of products from local stores in as little as an hour and can be used through iPhone, Android and desktop.
“Today, approximately 75 percent of what people buy is local, found within 15 miles from their home,” said Devin Wenig, president of eBay Marketplaces. “Traditional retail isn’t going away. But it is transforming, and that creates enormous opportunity within the $10 trillion total commerce market.”
He added: “The world is changing, with the lines between online and offline commerce blurring and the expectations of buyers and sellers rising rapidly. With eBay’s latest steps, we are bringing together the best of what people need from a shopping experience – speed and convenience – with things people love about shopping, like discovery and inspiration.”
Shutl, founded in 2009 by Tom Allason, has pioneered the use of deliveries from store within 90 minutes or in the hour of the customer’s choice. Customers include Argos, Oasis, Warehouse and Maplin.
In a blog on the Shutl website, Allason today said that as part of eBay, Shutl had “the ability to help define the future of shopping.”
He added: “This is very far from the end of the road for Shutl. Rather this is a doorway to a much greater opportunity, one that we at Shutl can’t wait to start executing on.”
