GoPuff is becoming one of the most popular delivery services in the United States.
GoPuff makes the ordering and delivery process much simpler than other services.
Rafael Ilishayev and Yakir Gola, Drexel University students, founded GoPuff in 2013.
This company bypasses the convenience store, allowing drivers to deliver in minutes.
You might be a new driver or are considering signing up to deliver for GoPuff.
In that case, you will have questions about GoPuff warehouses and the delivery process used by the company.
I’ve compiled as much information as I could find about GoPuff’s warehouses into this helpful guide.
Now, you can go into this gig with confidence, knowing that you have all the information.
Table Of Contents
Where Does GoPuff Get Their Inventory From?
GoPuff competes with convenience stores.
I was curious about how GoPuff secures its inventory.
Their prices are like those of a convenience store, meaning they must buy their stock at a low price.
Otherwise, they wouldn’t make a profit.
So, how do they manage this?
How Does GoPuff Work?
Delivery drivers do not shop at gas stations or grocery stores to pick up goods for the customer.
They pick them up from GoPuff’s warehouse.
This makes delivery much quicker than it would be through other services.
Because workers can make many stops after one trip to the warehouse.
GoPuff owns its inventory, so there is no middle man involved – just the customer, driver, an app, and customer service (if needed!).
What Kind of Products Does GoPuff Stock?
Similar to Cornershop, GoPuff buys products in bulk.
They buy anything from snacks to household goods and everyday essentials.
Some markets even offer alcohol delivery.
GoPuff is so popular because the delivery app can accommodate a wide range of requests.
If a college student is craving cookies, they can pick up their phone.
They’ll get a late-night grocery delivery.
State college and university students are some of the biggest GoPuff users.
Whether they need snacks, cleaning supplies, or school supplies, they receive them fast.
GoPuff’s products don’t end there.
I spent some time looking through the products offered on the app.
You can buy makeup, hygiene items, over-the-counter medications, first-aid products, and more.
I love the fact that you can order both drinks and toilet paper without ever leaving your home.
Since GoPuff stocks such a wide range of products, I looked into how they source their inventory.
Where Does GoPuff’s Inventory Come From?
It turns out, GoPuff uses a service called RangeMe.
This service connects manufacturers and buyers, allowing retailers to source products to sell.
Using RangeMe, GoPuff buyers can contact suppliers or vice-versa.
They can negotiate prices and buy in bulk.
This eliminates the overhead that traditional convenience stores have.
It also cuts out the middleman that other gig work services, like DoorDash or Uber Eats, contend with.
Besides finding partners on RangeMe, GoPuff lists contact information for brand partnerships.
This includes companies who want to distribute samples of their products through GoPuff.
Through these channels, GoPuff can get its wide range of products.
Does GoPuff Have Warehouses?
Yes. GoPuff has warehouses.
This is part of what makes GoPuff so unique compared to other delivery services.
Other digital services hire independent contractors to go to individual restaurants and stores.
They pick up orders there and then deliver them.
Through those services, the consumer pays a markup on the retail price of the goods.
This way the delivery company makes a profit after paying the store or restaurant.
GoPuff purchases its inventory outright, so its prices rival those of convenience stores.
There is no markup passed on to the consumer.
Because of this, GoPuff charges a delivery fee of only $1.95.
By keeping prices low, they make sure to build repeat customers.
What Is a GoPuff Warehouse?
GoPuff stores its inventory in warehouses.
GoPuff is unlike regular convenience stores, grocery stores, or gas stations.
They don’t have to worry about attractive signage or an interior that appeals to consumers.
Their warehouses, or micro fulfillment centers, contain thousands of products organized in rows.
Since GoPuff owns its stock, they can track it so that managing reorders is a smooth process.
This helps end out-of-stock products.
GoPuff explains how they train employees on the location of each of the items in the warehouse.
This makes packing orders quick and efficient.
GoPuff’s warehouses run like a well-oiled machine.
How Many Warehouses Does GoPuff Have?
GoPuff delivers to over 1,000 cities currently.
The GoPuff model relies on fast deliveries.
They must place their warehouses so that drivers can deliver within thirty minutes.
Because of this, they have over 250 micro fulfillment centers poised to fill orders right now.
GoPuff’s primary operations are in the United States.
Their headquarters is in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
As of 2021, GoPuff delivery serves some UK locations, with plans to expand across Europe.
Where Are GoPuff Warehouses Usually Located?
You may be familiar with this Philadelphia Inquirer article.
It tells how one center became so busy that drivers and trucks caused congestion.
Residents began to complain to the city council.
As spokeswoman Liz Romaine said, the company was quick to move.
They wanted to ensure that they did not cause an inconvenience to the neighborhood.
Because of the potential for problems like that, GoPuff has warehouse location requirements.
GoPuff warehouses must have parking so there are spaces available for drivers.
They must place them somewhere that allows for delivery to as many consumers as possible.
Sometimes, it takes more than one micro fulfillment center to cover one city.
In other instances, one warehouse can service several cities.
Popular GoPuff Warehouse Locations
GoPuff delivers to many major cities. One of their notable locations is Philadelphia, where GoPuff headquarters is.
They operate five warehouses in Philadelphia.
You can earn with GoPuff in Washington, New York City, San Antonio, Fort Collins, Tempe, and more.
Some of the most popular warehouse locations:
GoPuff Warehouses in Baltimore
The Baltimore market expanded fast.
GoPuff went from operating one Baltimore warehouse in 2018 to four warehouses as of 2020.
GoPuff Warehouses in Atlanta
GoPuff launched in Atlanta with one warehouse in 2017.
As of 2020, there are six Atlanta micro fulfillment centers.
The company focuses on local favorites to drive interest in Atlanta.
They promote well-loved brands.
This practice makes GoPuff attractive to consumers.
GoPuff Warehouses in Richmond, Virginia
The company has not announced whether there are more locations in Richmond.
Their warehouse (or warehouses) service most of the surrounding area.
Virginia allows alcohol delivery, making GoPuff (and its alcohol service, goBooze) very popular.
GoPuff Warehouses in Chicago
Chicago has seen huge GoPuff growth in the past few years.
In 2019, there were already four locations.
As of 2021, there are at least twelve micro fulfillment centers in the Chicago area.
In Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed this peek into GoPuff’s warehouses.
This is a digital delivery service with a great business model.
Their low prices and high-profit margins mean that they can pay gig workers a fair wage.
Now that you know how GoPuff warehouses work, how many and where they are, you can take on becoming a GoPuff driver.
I hope this guide has given you some insight into the job ahead. Time to take to the road!
How secure is signing up on the go puff up with your private information
Is there a difference between a Warehouse and a Micro-fulfillment center? You mentioned both of these in the article but it isn’t clear how they differ (if they do)