Retail giant Walmart has announced a partnership with home service app Handy, to offer assembly and installation services relating to home furniture, appliances and electronics.
Retail giant Walmart has announced a partnership with home service app Handy, to offer assembly and installation services relating to home furniture, appliances and electronics.
Shoppers who need help with installation or assembly for their new appliances may pick up a card from Handy’s in-store display and pay by the register. Then they will receive a unique code to access Handy’s website to book their appointments.
Walmart has offered the service in 25 stores in Atlanta. Its goal is to reach 2,000 additional stores across 45 states by next month. The tech giant operates 5,000 stores in the U.S. in total.
Founded in 2012, Handy lets users book household service providers such as cleaners, handyman or plumbers. Over 80,000 service professionals are completing tasks now on the platform, for over half a million customers and one million bookings.
“Our program with Handy enables us to eliminate the friction of installation and assembly, and offer customers a convenient, delightful experience from start to finish. We know Handy’s services are going to be a big help to our busy customers,” said Daniel Eckert, the senior vice president of Services and Digital Acceleration at Walmart.
IKEA and Amazon both offer similar services. The Swedish furniture maker acquired Task Rabbit last year and utilized its existing platform to provide in-home assembly and installation service.
Meanwhile, Amazon provides a home improvements service which connects customers with plumbing or housekeeping, as well as Smart Home Services that consults user’s questions on smart homes and help install smart home devices and Wi-Fi networking systems.
Home furniture assembly and installation may just be the beginning of Walmart’s approach. With the rise of smart home market, the retail giant might leverage this partnership and enter smart home device installation when it also starts to strengthen its focus on connected gadgets for home. Various smart home gadgets are now available at Walmart, including Google Home speakers, smart lighting, security cameras and networking devices.