Amazon Prime members in Vancouver and Toronto will soon be able to receive Prime Now orders in one or two hours, according to several media reports including the Wall Street Journal, creating a strong incentive sure to drive growth of the lucrative subscription program north of the border.
The pilot program will begin in Vancouver in November and Toronto in January, according to the reports. If it succeeds it will be expanded to other Canadian cities sometime next year.
Since it was launched in Seattle in December 2014, Prime Now has since grown to more than 30 U.S. metropolitan areas. In those places two-hour delivery is free for $99-per-year Prime members, with one-hour delivery about an $8 upgrade.
Prime Now, available in eight other countries besides the U.S., is also expanding in Europe, where Amazon is adding a reported 1,300 fulfillment centers in support of the initiative. The service is also available in Japan and Singapore.
According to a March report from Cowen & Co, 25% of Prime members used Prime Now in January 2017. The survey also found 24% of respondents purchased goods weekly on Prime Now while 70% said they did so multiple times per month.