Shopify to Acquire eCommerce Firm Deliverr

Shopify has agreed to purchase eCommerce fulfillment provider Deliverr in a $2.1 billion deal that is the Canadian company’s largest to date as it continues its effort to compete with Amazon.

As The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday (May 5), Shopify plans to merge Deliverr with its own fulfillment network to create a larger, broader logistics unit.

As we noted when word of the deal leaked last month, Deliverr helps merchants on online marketplaces such as Amazon and eBay get their products to consumers in two days or less.

See also: Shopify Eyes Tech Startup Deliverr Acquisition to Streamline Order Fulfillment

That quick delivery is crucial for retailers in an environment where shoppers want their purchases immediately after making them, a mentality that blossomed during COVID. It’s a way of thinking that isn’t likely to go away as the pandemic subsides.

Based in San Francisco, California, Deliverr uses analysts to predict where people might be interested in buying goods, then employs the information about their wants and needs to ensure items can be delivered quickly.

On an earnings call Thursday, Shopify Chief Financial Officer Amy Shapero said the deal will help the company “accelerate its roadmap by assembling an end-to-end logistics platform that manages inventory from port to porch and across all sales channels.”

Last month, PYMNTS wrote about the battle between Amazon and Shopify. Shopify’s earnings from earlier this year show the competition tilting in Amazon’s favor: it had an estimated 41% of U.S. retail eCommerce sales last year, compared to Shopify’s 10.3%.

Read more: Last-Mile Logistics Could Decide Winner in Growing Amazon vs Shopify eComm Rivalry

But that gap can be narrowed with the Deliverr purchase, which, as we wrote, represents a move beyond just enabling online storefronts, while helping merchants offset some of their own operating costs.