Morrisons says its online grocery service will make its first London deliveries next month. The supermarket, currently rolling out the service out across the country, is now taking online food orders in North London via Morrisons.com .
Deliveries to postcodes from Ealing to Essex will begin on July 9 2014.
Simon Thompson, managing director for online food at Morrisons said: “We’re aware that we’re up against other more established services and the competition is fierce. However, our online distribution model is different to the other major supermarkets, and is already delivering an industry-leading service to customers.”
It’s been important for Morrisons to differentiate its fledgling service from more established ones from rivals including Tesco, Asda and Ocado, whose technology is powering Morrisons’ fulfillments.
Morrisons is putting the emphasis on the combination of affordability and freshness with Ocado’s supporting technology, logistics and distribution. It says it will be aiming to maintain its 95% success rate for on-time deliveries so far.
Delivery slots for the London service start at £1 for a one-hour time slot. Customers will be able to check freshness of the goods they’ve ordered before they accept a delivery.
• The news comes as Transport for London reveals Amazon lockers will be sited in two London Underground car parks. Deliveries to lockers in Finchley Central and Newbury Park will start on June 30. Amazon joins lockerbank company InPost in having lockers on the network while grocery retailers including Tesco and Asda have already set up click and collection pick-up points in Underground car parks.
Boris Johnson, London mayor, said: “London Underground’s click and collect revolution is going from strength to strength, attracting some of the most recognisable names in retail. Amazon is a fantastic addition to a cast of top brands who are reaching out to their customers in new ways and enabling TfL to generate vital revenue for improvements to our transport network.”
Graeme Craig, director of commercial development at TfL, said: “We’re delighted to have Amazon on board as they bring their Amazon Lockers service to our customers. Our click and collect partnerships have been extremely successful and we look forward to bringing more of the services our customers want to our network.”
The new lockers bring the total number of Amazon lockers in the UK to almost 300.
“Some of our first lockers in the world were launched in London and they have become the preferred delivery option for many in the capital,” said Christopher North, managing director of Amazon.co.uk.
“We are delighted to have teamed up with TfL to bring the convenience of Amazon Lockers to an even greater number of London commuters.”
