Walmart’s drone delivery program is soaring into the new year, having successfully completed its intended expansion plans for 2022. The company now operates, with its vendors, 36 drone delivery hubs across seven states, including Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, North Carolina, Texas, Utah and Virginia.
“I’m incredibly proud of our team for creating the largest drone delivery footprint of any U.S. retailer and providing customers with an incredibly fast – and innovative – option for delivery,” said Vik Gopalakrishnan, vice president, innovation & automation, Walmart U.S., “We’re encouraged by the positive response from customers and look forward to making even more progress in 2023.”
Over the past year, Walmart has safely completed more than 6,000 deliveries to customers in as little as 30 minutes. The top five items delivered via drone from Walmart were, in order, Great Value Cookies and Cream Ice Cream 16 oz, 2lb Bag of Lemons, Freshness Guaranteed Hot Rotisserie Chicken, Red Bull 8.4 fl. oz, and Bounty Select-a-Size Paper Towels. Currently 85% of items in a Walmart Neighborhood Market meet the 10 lb. weight and volume requirements for drone delivery.
Walmart is uniquely positioned to offer drone delivery at scale with its 4,700 stores located within 90% of the U.S. population, and this ability to scale will provide even more customers with the convenient opportunity to receive items via drone in the years ahead.
