Philadelphia-based delivery startup Gopuff is expanding its move into brick-and-mortar retail with a storefront in Silicon Valley, adding to its in-the-works plan for physical locations in Florida and Texas, the Philadelphia Inquirer and others reported on Wednesday (Sept. 22).
Gopuff delivers convenience store items, including alcohol, COVID-10 testing kits and other essentials, in 15 to 40 minutes. The 12,000-square-foot San Francisco storefront will be located at 3535 Geary Blvd., previously occupied by Pier One Imports. The space will fulfill in-person and online orders.
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If approved by the city planner, Gopuff’s San Francisco storefront will be the startup’s first traditional brick-and-mortar retail shop. Physical space in Texas and Florida is about to be launched and the startup is also exploring other brick-and-mortar locations.
The company’s delivery model is based largely on a network of dark stores that serve as fulfillment centers stocked with about 3,000 items. It began its San Francisco delivery operations earlier this year.
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Gopuff acquired BevMo, an alcoholic beverage specialty retailer with 161 neighborhood stores located throughout California, Arizona and Washington, for $350 million in December 2020, according to a press release. In June, the startup acquired Liquor Barn stores in Kentucky for an undisclosed amount.
The delivery startup has expanded across the U.S. and Europe and delivers to more than 1,000 cities and has an estimated valuation of $15 billion.
Co-founded in 2013 by Rafael Ilishayev and Yakir Gola while they were sophomores at Philadelphia’s Drexel University, Gopuff started out of the back of minivan delivering snacks to classmates around campus, according to the company’s website. The company now over 500 micro-fulfillment centers, in addition to its acquisitions of BevMo and Liquor Barn stores.
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Gola told CNBC that the company has a goal of adding 40 or 50 micro-fulfillment centers every month and moving into new categories like cleaning products, baby supplies, and pet essentials. It also started delivering hot food such as breakfast sandwiches and pizza in several locations.