B&Q is trialling robot deliveries in Milton Keynes

The home improvement giant has been testing the new delivery option with courier DPD, with smaller parcels being brought to shoppers’ doors by a fleet of autonomous robots. 

Customers will be notified that their order will be delivered by robot in advance. Once they confirm they will be home to accept the parcel, a robot will be dispatched.

The deliveries are trackable on a map and shoppers are notified when the robot reaches their property. They are then given a code to unlock the robot’s compartment and retrieve their parcel. Once the compartment is closed, the robot returns to the depot. 

B&Q’s supply and logistics director Amélie Gallichan-Todd wrote on LinkedIn: “I am really proud of the work we’re doing to improve our fulfilment services to give our customers more choice of when and how their B&Q purchases are delivered.

“We already offer different options including one-hour and 24-hour click and collect from our 300 stores, home delivery direct from 52 stores, and home delivery from our central distribution centres, as well as direct from drop-ship vendors.

“Our aim is to give customers more choice of speed and location, while at the same time fulfilling our commitment to reduce our impact on the environment.

“We’re already the second-biggest liquified natural gas fleet in the country and are adding electric vehicles to our home delivery fleet later this year.

“We’re also trialling alternative ways of delivering products to home, such as our trial in Milton Keynes with DPD UK to deliver customers’ orders to home using autonomous robots.”

B&Q announced yesterday that it was going live on Deliveroo, offering shoppers deliveries in as little as 25 minutes. 

Todd said: “We’re constantly looking at how we can help make home improvement projects easier. This includes helping customers to get their home improvement products in the most efficient and convenient way possible by meeting increasing consumer demand for speed, convenience and mobile access.

“We’re delighted to be partnering with Deliveroo to test on-demand delivery for our customers, served by nine of our B&Q Local high street stores in London.”