Sainsbury's Adds 900 Jobs In Online Push

Sainsbury (Amsterdam: SJ6.AS - news) 's is creating 900 jobs as it launches a same-day online delivery service trial, a month after online giant Amazon launched its own groceries offer.

The supermarket will start the service at three stores before rolling it out to 30 by Christmas.

It (Other OTC: ITGL - news) said it was recruiting 470 workers at its new online fulfilment centre in Bromley-by-Bow in east London to keep pace with online demand in the capital, with another 430 added by 2020.

The new same-day service will allow customers who order by 12pm to have their shopping delivered to their home by 6pm, or to use a click-and-collect service to pick it up at 4pm. It will be free for orders over £100.

Two stores in London, at Streatham Common and Richmond (Taiwan OTC: 2743.TWO - news) , are taking part in the initial trial together with a third at Brookwood in Surrey.

Robbie Feather, Sainsbury's director of online, said: "This is a natural next step in delivering our strategy to help customers shop whenever and wherever they want."

Separately, Sainsbury's is running a small one-hour delivery trial from a store in Wandsworth, with up to 20 items delivered to customers within a 3km (1.9 mile) radius for a charge of £4.99.

It comes after Amazon revealed its push into the UK grocery marker last month when it launched AmazonFresh, offering same-day Morrisons fresh food deliveries in parts of London to members of its Prime subscription service who pay an additional charge.

Sainsbury's takeover of Argos owner Home Retail Group means it is shaping up as a major rival of the online retailer in non-food retailing.