After H-E-B acquired Austin on-demand delivery service Favor in February, it felt like it was only a matter of time before almost everything from the retail giant could be brought to your front door within an hour or so.
Quickly, H-E-B integrated Favor delivery for common groceries. But, for a time, the beer and wine aisle was off limits. Now, it's open for business.
H-E-B announced Friday it has begun offering beer and wine delivery in the greater Austin area, including outlying areas such as Round Rock, Bee Cave and Cedar Park. The new service is launching in Austin, Houston, San Antonio and Corpus Christi. But it will roll out to 30 Texas markets in the near future.
“The combination of H-E-B and Favor continues to be a win for Texans,” Jag Bath, Favor CEO and H-E-B chief digital officer, said in a news release. “Delivering almost anything in under an hour is what Favor is built on, and now with H-E-B, we are excited to add the new category of beer and wine delivery to Favor’s on-demand platform.”
The move comes about four months after Favor was acquired by H-E-B for an undisclosed price. And it comes at a time when there are already more than a half dozen options for ordering alcohol to your house from a smartphone.
Earlier this month, Amazon Prime Now began offering free, two-hour delivery of beer and wine and one-hour delivery for $4.99. While Instacart doesn't currently offer alcohol delivery from most major grocery stores in Austin, it has offered deliveries from Spec's, which also has some groceries and booze, since 2015.
H-E-B's partnership with Favor gives it an advantage over beer- and wine-only services because you could get a few groceries delivered along with your alcohol. Want a bottle of rosé, cotton swabs, salsa and a snack for your dog? You're covered. (Currently, H-E-B's alcohol offerings are set up in a store in the Favor app as part of the free delivery promotion that lasts until Labor Day. You can also order groceries, but it triggers the delivery fee.)
Also, there's no minimum order -- so if you just want a six-pack, that's an option. But you'll have to give a minimum $2 tip to your runner.
