Kohl's is re-entering the same-day delivery business — this time leveraging the Instacart app and its network of drivers. The company says that Instacart enables 109M US households to obtain delivery in as fast as an hour from 1,172 Kohl's stores across the U.S.
Customers ordering Kohl's deliveries on Instacart can still earn their Kohl's Rewards loyalty points, as well as place orders for either same-day or scheduled delivery, with the same prices as in-store. Product categories eligible for same-day delivery include accessories, home goods, beauty & skincare items, and pet supplies.
Kohl's was actually an early pioneer in same-day delivery, initially partnering with the now-defunct platform Deliv in 2015, but the company hasn't offered the service again since Deliv was acquired by Target in 2020 and subsequently ceased operations.
This partnership with Kohl's is part of Instacart's push to expand the range of retailers it partners with beyond grocery. It currently also delivers for Best Buy, Big Lots, and Staples, among others.
I'll be the to ask the question we're all wondering right now — is same day delivery really necessary?
I don't remember the last time I ever desperately needed a product from Kohl's in less than an hour. However I guess that's the benefit of partnering with Instacart for the deliveries instead of building out your own network of drivers. If a customer really needs a product from Kohl's quickly, the option is now available. As for the rest of us, we'll go back to remembering that Kohl's exists when we drive into a Walmart plaza and see it in the neighboring strip mall.