Waitrose wraps up deal with Just Eat amid supermarket delivery surge

More Waitrose customers will soon be able to get shopping delivered to their door in a matter of minutes after the upmarket grocery chain announced a tie-up with Just Eat Takeaway.

The delivery giant has added Waitrose products to its range for customers in London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester and other cities, in a multi-year deal.

Waitrose said it has seen weekly on-demand grocery sales surge by 140% in the first six months of the year, following similar partnerships with Deliveroo and Uber Eats.

The supermarket chain’s executive director, James Bailey, said: “As demand for greater convenience has grown, so have expectations of convenience food – and rightfully so. Neither show signs of slowing and that is a huge opportunity for us.”

He added that the partnership will allow Waitrose to “reach even more customers”.

Just Eat customers will get the pick of Waitrose’s premium range, Duchy Organic; upmarket ready meals; Gail’s Bakery-branded items; and its range of wines, beers and spirits.

Waitrose said it will also introduce its Christmas range – of more than 550 items and 175 new products – to the delivery platform.

Just Eat has been branching out from its core offering of delivering takeaway meals for some years.

It claims to have more than one million regular customers in the UK, and that it delivered 12 grocery orders to people’s doors every minute last year.

Last month, it even announced a partnership with sex toy company Lovehoney, while other retail tie-ups include Boots, Cardfactory and HelloFresh.

Claire Pointon, managing director for the UK and Ireland at Just Eat, said: “Many of today’s consumers no longer consider speed a luxury but a necessity.

“This is supported by Just Eats’ own research – three in four people who have ordered on-demand groceries believe it will become a part of their daily lives.

She added that the deal would strengthen “the choice and value” available to customers on the platform.