7-Eleven to deliver to parks, beaches

Craving a Slurpee from 7-Eleven but you're stuck in the park?

Not to worry: The convenience-store chain is launching a service that lets customers order everything from its trademark frozen drink to a battery charger and have it delivered to a public place such as a park or a beach.

The retailer told The Associated Press that more than 2,000 7-Eleven "hot spots" including New York's Central Park and Venice Beach in Los Angeles will be working starting Monday. Customers need to download 7-Eleven's 7NOW app and select "Show 7NOW Pins" to find a hot spot near them.

The chain foresees eventually having 200,000 hot spot locations, said to Gurmeet Singh, 7-Eleven's executive vice-president and chief digital information and marketing officer.

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The strategy follows a similar service run by Domino's that lets customers order pizza and other items on its menu and have them delivered to more than 150,000 public locations.

The 7-Eleven's delivery service is the latest move ramping up convenience for its shoppers who are shifting more of their buying online.

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In 2018, the chain rolled out an app-based delivery service to shoppers' homes in 28 major metropolitan markets. When it was rolling out that service, it found customers were asking to have items directly delivered to public places, such as parks, or seeking delivery when they're stuck at the beach and need a water or a phone charger, Singh said.

"We've been on this journey to redefine convenience," said Singh. "This makes it easy for people to stay in the moment."

The company says there's no minimum order required. The same fees apply to both delivery services. The chain charges a flat delivery fee of $3.99. And for orders under $15, customers pay an extra $1.99. For all orders, it promises average wait time of 30 minutes. For both services, the orders are fulfilled from its 9,100 stores.

For the delivery service to public hot spots, 7-Eleven will be using Postmates. For the delivery service to customers' homes, it uses DoorDash in addition to Postmates.