EBay Acquires Startup to Expand Same-Day Delivery
EBay announced Oct. 22 an agreement to acquire startup Shutl in an effort to expand same-day delivery and compete with other Internet retailers. EBay did not disclose how much it agreed to pay for Shutl.
The San Jose, Calif., company is looking to expand its eBay Now service that allows shoppers to have products from local stores delivered in as little as an hour.
EBay said Shutl’s technology and expertise as well as its network of couriers will help facilitate an expansion into 25 markets by the end of 2014.
“Today, approximately 75% of what people buy is local, found within 15 miles from their home,” Devin Wenig, president of eBay Marketplace, said in a statement.
“Traditional retail isn’t going away. But it is transforming, and that creates enormous opportunity within the $10 trillion total commerce market.”
EBay Now will expand into Chicago on Oct. 22, Dallas later this year and select international markets, including London, in early 2014, the company said in a statement.
