Instacart expands Quebec footprint with Sephora, Staples, H&M

Instacart is expanding its presence in Quebec, including the addition of two major retailers to its platform and a major hiring initiative.

The on-demand delivery provider, which initially launched operations in Quebec, in Montreal in June 2021, is branching out into Quebec City, Laval, Gatineau, Longueuil, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Granby, Saint-Hyacinthe, Boucherville, Drummondville, Sherbrooke, Châteauguay, Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Shawinigan, Lévis, Brossard, Repentigny and Blainville.

Customers in those Quebec communities can now order products online for delivery in as fast as an hour from H&M, Pharmaprix, Sephora Canada, and Staples Canada (known as Bureau en Gros in Quebec). Instacart also offers French-language services for customers, Instacart shoppers, and retailers in Quebec, which marks the first first time the company has translated its same-day online delivery platform outside of English. According to Instacart, since launching Quebec operations in June, one-quarter of customers there have opted for French language services.

Following this expansion, Instacart will now deliver groceries and other goods from more than 40 retailers and 2,400 stores across Canada, including initial launch partners Costco, Les Aliments M&M, and Walmart. To further support this expansion, Instacart is planning to bring on an additional 10,000 full-service shoppers across Canada.

In addition to the Instacart marketplace mobile app and website, Quebec consumers will also be able to gain access to Instacart delivery via Staples Canada, Costco and Les Aliments M&M's web and mobile platforms, all of which are powered by Instacart's enterprise technology.

"As Instacart continues to expand across Quebec and serve as an enablement platform for more retailers across Canada, we're thrilled to add H&M, Pharmaprix, Sephora Canada, and Staples Canada to the Instacart marketplace. With today's expansion, 90% of Canadian households can now access same-day delivery from the retailers they love via Instacart, an important milestone as more consumers turn to delivery and pickup solutions to meet their everyday shopping needs," said Chris Rogers, VP of retail at Instacart. "We're proud to make it possible for more Quebecers to have the groceries and household essentials they need - ranging from office supplies to skincare and over-the-counter medicine to clothing - delivered often in as fast as an hour from the retailers they know, love and trust."

"With new ways to shop Sephora continuously rolling out, we are excited to be expanding our partnership with Instacart into the Quebec market," said Deborah Neff, senior VP, marketing at Sephora Canada. "We remain committed to meeting the evolving needs of our clients and to offering them the flexibility, ease and convenience to shop how they want. We're thrilled that our clients in Quebec will now also have the option to take advantage of Instacart's unique services."

"Staples Canada became Instacart's first working and learning retail partner in 2019 and we are excited to be able to expand our same-day delivery options with Instacart to our Bureau en Gros customers in Quebec," said Andrew Go, chief digital and data officer, Staples Canada. "Every day our team is looking for new ways to offer more access and options to our omnichannel customers, and our continued partnership with Instacart is a great way to provide our customers with another convenient delivery option."

Instacart has partnered with more than 600 national, regional and local retailers to deliver from nearly 55,000 stores across more than 5,500 cities in North America. Instacart's platform is available to over 85% of U.S. households and 90% of Canadian households.