Waitrose & Partners is to extend its Rapid Delivery trial outside London for the first time, following its success in the capital.

The service, which enables customers to have up to 25 grocery items from a choice of more than 2,000 products, delivered to their home or office, within two hours or less or on the same day, will be available in both Bath and Hove from 8 and 15 July, respectively.

The retailer is also adding 58 London postcodes in areas including Battersea, High Street Kensington, Bayswater, Victoria and Kingston.

Rapid launched in September 2018 after Waitrose teamed up with last mile retail delivery startup On the dot. Since the launch, the retailer has increased the number of postcodes its available in from eight to 98, giving it the potential to reach up to 1.2 million households – and average weekly orders have doubled.

Nicola Waller, head of business development at Waitrose, says: “There is a growing number of customers who want to get their shopping as and when they want it which gives us a great opportunity to continue testing the appetite for the service in new locations both inside and outside of London.”

On the dot chief executive Santosh Sahu added: “The huge popularity and take-up of the service echoes what we’re seeing across the grocery market – rapid and convenient delivery has become a key pillar in a shopper’s experience of a brand.”

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