Metro joins with Uber Eats for meal delivery

Canadian food and drug retailer Metro Inc. has partnered with Uber Eats for home delivery of ready-to-eat meals in Quebec.

Metro said Thursday that 23 stores now can deliver prepared meals to customers in Montreal, Laval and the South Shore area who place orders via the Uber Eats app. The rollout of the service follows a three-store pilot.

Meals available for delivery include a selection of sandwich and salad combos for lunch and a menu of individual and family-sized dinners. Orders are delivered in about 30 minutes to a home or workplace by an Uber Eats driver.

“In just a few clicks, customers can access a wide range of ready-to-eat meals prepared daily in stores using fresh products,” Gino Plevano, vice president of digital strategy and online shopping at Metro, said in a statement. “Through this service, we are meeting the growing demand for ready-to-eat options and satisfying the needs of our customers even more effectively.”

Metro said it’s the first Canadian food retailer to partner with Uber Eats. The Montreal-based company’s retail network includes more than 600 food stores under the Metro, Metro Plus, Super C and Food Basics banners as well as over 650 drugstores under the Jean Coutu, Brunet, Metro Pharmacy and Drug Basics banners.

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Uber Eats launched in Canada in December 2015 and now provides delivery service from local restaurants in such cities as Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Vancouver.

“Uber Eats is very pleased to partner with Metro that, like us, continually strives to innovate to meet consumers’ changing needs,” commented Simon Brown, general manager of Uber Eats Quebec. “We are working very hard to continue to expand the offer of affordable meals on Uber Eats and provide our growing and diverse customer base with an ever greater selection.”

Metro said the Uber Eats delivery service furthers its omnichannel strategy. Last June, the retailer launched same-day delivery for its online grocery service across Quebec after a pilot in three stores starting in October 2016 and subsequent expansion to greater Montreal and Quebec City. President and CEO Eric La Flèche has said Metro plans to introduce online grocery delivery in Ontario in 2019, beginning in the greater Toronto area.