DoorDash Launches Instant Delivery Run by Full-Time Employees

(Bloomberg) -- DoorDash Inc. is launching an ultrafast grocery delivery service that will be staffed by full-time workers with traditional employee benefits.

The new offering, which will be rolled out first in New York starting Monday, will allow customers to order anything from fresh produce and dry-goods to household products from the app and have it at their doorstep in 15 minutes or less. DoorDash will offer a $15 hourly wage and health insurance benefits for couriers operating the new rapid service.

“This is an emergent category that can fundamentally transform the convenience expectation with customers,” DoorDash President Christopher Payne said in an interview. 

After conquering restaurant delivery, DoorDash is facing increasing competition from startups like GoPuff, Jokr and Gorillas that have whittled the delivery of grocery and convenience items down to as little as 10 minutes. The nature of the business, which relies on a network of warehouses, or dark stores, that carry a limited number of items for a smaller delivery radius, has prompted this fast-growing crop of startups to rely on full-time employees in contrast to the sprawling freelance workforce that underpins DoorDash, Instacart Inc. and Uber Techonologies Inc.’s Eats.

“Achieving ultra-fast delivery times inherently requires more structure and organization to ensure orders are fulfilled quickly and merchant and customer expectations are met,” DoorDash wrote in a blog post following the announcement. 

Uber has yet to launch instant delivery but offers a version of the service through its partnership with GoPuff whereby users place an order on the Uber Eats app and it’s fulfilled by a GoPuff courier. Instacart has an express option in some cities that promises grocery delivery within 30 minutes.

Payne said DoorDash will hire about 60 employees for its first warehouse, or DashMart, in New York that will work across delivery, stocking, picking and packing. Payne declined to elaborate on expansion plans but said the service will “initially be focused on the U.S.”

Alongside the new offering, DoorDash is creating a company called DashCorps, which will operate a staffing and management service that it can sell to merchants looking to hire employees on a full or part-time basis. 

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