DoorDash Launches Convenience Stores in Major Cities
SAN FRANCISCO — Convenience store operators are facing a new competitor with DoorDash's introduction of DashMart.
According to Andrew Ladd, director, New Verticals at DoorDash, DashMart is a new type of c-store, offering both household essentials and local restaurant favorites to customers' doorsteps.
"On DashMart, you'll find thousands of convenience, grocery, and restaurant items, from ice cream and chips, to cough medicine and dog food, to spice rubs and packaged desserts from the local restaurants you love on DoorDash," he wrote in a blog posted to the company's website.
DashMart is available in eight cities: Chicago; Cincinnati; Columbus, Ohio; Dallas; Minneapolis; Salt Lake City; the greater Phoenix area; and Redwood City, Calif. The platform will go live in additional cities, including Baltimore, Denver, Sacramento, San Diego, and Concord, Calif., in the coming months.
DashMart stores are owned, operated and curated by DoorDash.
The move comes as DoorDash boosted its platform to meet consumer needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. In April, the company launched the convenience category on DoorDash, powered by partnerships with several retailers, including 7-Eleven Inc. and Wawa Inc. Since entering the category, its convenience offering includes more than 2,500 c-stores across more than 1,100 cities in the United States, Ladd explained.
San Francisco-based DoorDash followed this with the Main Street Strong initiative in May, highlighting its commitment to helping restaurants on the road to recovery.
"Restaurants on DoorDash are four times more likely to have remained open during the pandemic compared to U.S. restaurants as a whole. Now more than ever, we're focused on finding innovative ways to help merchants grow their businesses and continue to keep their doors open," Ladd wrote.
Through DashMart, local businesses can reach customers online, transforming how the company's merchant partners can sell their retail products. In addition to expanding its partnership's with national brands, the concept allows new types of retailers to sell their products in DoorDash.
"Our mission is to connect customers to the best in their cities while helping any business on Main Street grow, and we hope to inspire even more local businesses — from restaurants and bakeries to artisanal shops and home goods retailers — to sell with us on DashMart," Ladd wrote. "Customers have long used DoorDash to discover new restaurants in their neighborhoods, and this latest launch continues our commitment to the growth and success of local businesses."