Dive Brief:

• Michaels is piloting Instacart deliveries at nearly 100 store locations in Chicago, Dallas and Washington, D.C., according to a Wednesday press release.

• In the next few months, the company plans to expand Instacart deliveries to all of its stores across the country, according to the announcement. 

• Shoppers can order arts and crafts products such as canvases, yarn and paint to be delivered to their home in as soon as an hour. Customers can find the retailer and receive order updates within the Instacart mobile app, per the press release.

Dive Insight:

As the COVID-19 pandemic drags on and shoppers continue to depend on deliveries, Michaels joins a robust roster of retailers relying on Instacart for deliveries — including Family Dollar, Sephora, Best Buy, Rite Aid, Staples and Walgreens. The partnership with Instacart appears to be a continued effort to adapt during the pandemic. Around this time last year, Michaels introduced same-day, contactless delivery. 

"As the largest one-stop shop for all things arts and crafts in North America, our partnership with Instacart provides a quick and convenient way for our makers to purchase ordinary craft supplies so they can create extraordinary projects," Heather Bennett, Michaels executive vice president of innovation, said in a statement. Bennett noted that Michaels is the first arts and crafts retailer to be available on the platform.

Despite credit rating agencies downgrading the retailer early on in the pandemic, Michaels has had a good year. Given that the pandemic halted most in-person gatherings, homebound consumers turned to arts and crafts as a socially distant activity, resulting in an overall sales and e-commerce boost for Michaels. Michaels also entered into a merger agreement with Apollo Global Management to acquire the retailer for $5 billion last month. 

Instacart, for its part, has been on a mission to attract retailers like Michaels to its platform and position itself for future growth. In early March, Instacart raised $265 million in funding, which will go toward hiring more corporate employees, improving its marketplace, introducing advertising from CPG companies and creating e-commerce tools for retailers. However, Instacart also faces stiff competition from similar platforms vying for market share. GoPuff raised $1.15 billion last month, which will allow the startup to expand, introduce new product categories, bring on more staff and enhance its technology. Plus, DoorDash has turned its attention to retailers, adding stores like Sam's Club, 7-Eleven and PetSmart to its platform.