Harris Teeter this week launched its proprietary delivery service in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, according to a company announcement.
The same-day service extends the grocer’s reach across a key market where it currently operates more than a dozen stores. Deliveries are made using Harris Teeter branded trucks that are refrigerated and have frozen items packed in dry ice to prevent thawing.
Customers that use the service can sign up for a 30-day trial of HT Plus, Harris Teeter’s membership program that offers perks like no-fee delivery and free pickup at $59 and $99 annual payment tiers.
Competitors like Giant Food and Safeway are also vying for online grocery orders in the nation’s capital as that market evolves. Last August, FreshDirect exited Washington, D.C., several years after establishing service. Last month, Giant Food made the sudden announcement that it would close three e-commerce fulfillment centers as it focuses on a more “localized fulfillment model.”
The expansion to Washington, D.C., comes just a few months after Harris Teeter Delivery launched in the greater Maryland area.
Harris Teeter’s in-house delivery service is fueled by the 350,000-square-foot automated fulfillment center in Frederick, Maryland, that parent company Kroger officially opened in June. That customer fulfillment center, or CFC, is Kroger’s eighth and the latest such facility that the company has opened.
Kroger currently operates CFCs and smaller spoke facilities across more than a dozen states in partnership with Ocado. That expansion is currently on hold, however, as Kroger evaluates the performance of its network and navigates its proposed acquisition of Albertsons.
