Wal-Mart Company, Startup Latch Pitch NYC Landlords with Systems for Easier Delivery
July 16 2017 - 2:44PM
Dow Jones News
By Keiko Morris
Jet.com Inc., the online retailer owned by Wal-Mart Stores Inc.,
and real-estate technology startup Latch are aiming to expand their
reach by offering a free system to New York City landlords to
potentially make shopping online easier for tenants in nondoorman
buildings.
The companies are testing a program providing free installation
of Latch's keyless technology for lobby entrances in 1,000 city
buildings, said Luke Schoenfelder, Latch co-founder and chief
executive. Focused initially in Brooklyn and Manhattan, the program
aims to smooth out the logistical hassles of shopping online for
the many urban residents who don't have building staff to accept
deliveries when they aren't home.
"People are ordering so many things online," Mr. Schoenfelder
said. "Access is holding that back because you need to be home in
order for that to happen."
Latch's hardware and software system allows entry using methods
such as a passcode, smartphone or a smart card. Delivery personnel
will be able to use temporary passcodes generated with Jet.com
orders to enter lobbies and drop off online purchases. The program,
reported earlier in TechCrunch, could reach 100,000 people and
allow the companies to test this type of keyless entry on a large
scale.
Jet.com's teams have been working on ways to reduce online
shopping difficulties faced by urban apartment dwellers. Jet.com,
which is based in Hoboken, N.J., has many employees who live in
urban areas and face similar issues, said Sumaiya Balbale, vice
president of marketing for Jet.com.
"We are focused on identifying points of friction at every step
of the e-commerce shopping experience," Ms. Balbale said.
The buildings participating in the program haven't yet been
identified. However, many of Latch's investors are connected to
multigenerational family real-estate companies with apartment
portfolios that could serve as a testing ground. Corigin Real
Estate Group has deployed the technology. Another Latch investor
Sterling VC, a venture arm of the Wilpon and Katz families' sports,
media and real-estate businesses, is open to considering the
idea.
"It's nice to test it out at a scale like this with a partner of
Wal-Mart's size and ability," said Farzam Kamel, a partner at
Sterling VC.
Write to Keiko Morris at Keiko.Morris@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 16, 2017 14:29 ET (18:29 GMT)
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