Never Leave Home Again
'Favor-ite' Houston delivery service carted off by H-E-B
Austin-based Favor Delivery, the cult delivery app beloved by busy parents and hungover college kids alike, has been purchased by Texas grocery giant H-E-B. On February 15, the San Antonio-based chain announced it was acquiring Favor for an undisclosed amount.
Favor has been a game-changer since it came onto the scene in 2013. Suddenly, for a slight fee, users could order almost anything via Favor's mobile app, and within an hour or so a friendly driver clad in a light blue tuxedo T-shirt would show up at the front door. The service has become so ubiquitous in Austin that it's even become a verb. ("Don't want to leave your house? Just Favor it.")
That kind of cult-like following was enough to attract the attention of Texas' biggest grocery chain.
"Over the past two years, we have established a strong working relationship with Favor that has proven to be immensely successful for both companies," said Martin Otto, H-E-B’s chief operating officer, in a release. "We see a unique opportunity with this partnership to support and accelerate each other’s growth through the sharing of experience, insight, and resources.” Currently, Favor operates in more than 50 cities across Texas.
H-E-B also confirmed it will retain all Favor employees and the more than 50,000 delivery drivers, also known as runners. H-E-B also confirmed to CultureMap that, yes, you'll still be able to Favor just about anything.
H-E-B isn't the only grocery chain investing in technology-based delivery. Earlier this month, Amazon-owned Whole Foods Market announced it was using parent corporation's Prime service to deliver groceries for free within a two-hour window.