(Credit: Amazon)
Millions of people in busy cities have access to same-day delivery services, but options are more limited in rural areas. Amazon wants to change that by extending same-day and next-day deliveries to more than 4,000 smaller cities, towns, and rural communities by the end of 2026.
Amazon says it will invest $4 billion to triple the size of its rural delivery network.
"Whether you live in Monmouth, Iowa, or in downtown Los Angeles, now you're going to have the same fantastic Amazon customer experience: the ability to get the wide variety of items you need to keep your household running every day, delivered the same or next day," says Doug Herrington, CEO of Worldwide Amazon Stores.
(Credit: Amazon)The brand is focusing these deliveries on everyday essentials rather than the tens of thousands of longer-lasting products offered by Amazon. The retailer wants to use its grocery and household goods operation to show how fast it can be compared with its rivals.
That investment will include an unknown number of new facilities across the country, which Amazon says will create an average of 170 jobs per facility. Amazon will also upgrade its existing delivery stations into what it calls “hybrid hubs" capable of storing more inventory.
Amazon will use machine learning to predict when customers will need more of a specific item. It points to residents of Sharptown, Maryland, who use more after-sun body butter than other locations, so its algorithms will ensure it has more inventory available there.
The retailer didn't reference seasonality, but you can likely expect more sun care items to be in stock during summer months and the opposite during colder periods.
Amazon's website has a tool that tells you whether or not you can get the service. Expect to see this list of locations grow over the coming year and a half.