In a first for the Garden State, Instacart will be providing alcohol delivery across New Jersey through a partnership with Wegmans Food Markets and all independently-owned Wegmans Wine, Liquor & Beer locations.
Beginning Nov. 30, customers can order alcohol delivery in as fast as an hour or scheduled days in advance through the Instacart App and website and the Wegmans App and website.
“As the Garden State gears up for the holidays, Instacart is proud to unlock alcohol delivery in New Jersey for the first time ever,” said Ryan Hamburger, VP of retail partnerships at Instacart.
“By partnering with Wegmans to bring alcohol delivery and pickup to the Instacart App in New Jersey, we’re able to deliver customers a seamless shopping experience that gives them access to Wegmans’ wide selection of alcohol, alongside prepared foods, fresh groceries and household essentials – all delivered from the store to their door in as fast as an hour.
“With today’s launch in New Jersey, Instacart is proud to now power alcohol delivery and pickup across 28 states plus Washington, D.C.”
The New Jersey Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control recently granted Instacart the ability to offer alcohol ordering online. The technology company has many safety and compliance measures in place.
Employees must complete an internal training program before they are permitted to deliver alcohol on the platform. Instacart’s alcohol training curriculum covers verifying valid and unexpired IDs, confirming the recipient of an alcohol order is 21 or older, and verifying an ID matches the recipient.
The shopper training curriculum also emphasizes that alcohol may not be delivered to someone visibly intoxicated and it must never be left unattended.
“We know our customers are busy, and the holidays are no exception,” said Scott Payne, New Jersey director of wine, beer and spirits operations at Wegmans.
“Our New Jersey customers have enjoyed the convenience of ordering beer, wine and spirits, along with the rest of their groceries, for curbside pickup, and we’re excited to add delivery as an option. With this additional service, we want to help our customers spend less time getting ready for the holidays, and more time celebrating.”
The companies first partnered to offer same-day delivery in 2017, and have since expanded the partnership to include pickup, EBT SNAP acceptance and loyalty program integration.
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