El Corte Inglés launches unlimited 24-hour delivery scheme to compete with Amazon

IN A BID to compete with Amazon Prime, Spain's largest department store has launched an online platform with a set annual fee which allows unlimited deliveries of its goods, including supermarket produce.

El Corte Inglés has set up an App, for mobile phones and other devices, where, for €19.90 a year, customers can order anything they like and have it delivered within 24 hours.

At the moment, the service is available in 36 of Spain's 50 provinces, and in 54 cities nationwide.

Linked to the El Corte Inglés store card, which does not carry an issue charge or 'maintenance' commission costs – you only pay if you use it, and only for what you spend on it – the system allows consumers to choose between paying off the cost in one hit or doing so in instalments.

The El Corte Inglés card makes the first charge for purchases on day one of the second month after buying, and customers can choose a set repayment amount, where interest is minimal since, like most credit cards, it is linked to the Euribor, or Eurozone interest rate.

Until now, El Corte Inglés only had shopping Apps in place for its supermarket and its hypermarket, Hípercor, for household products and groceries, but the new programme extends to its entire store – clothing, cosmetics, jewellery, accessories, books, music and film, electronics and household appliances – as well as covering supermarket produce.

Deliveries are always within 24 hours, and are unlimited, meaning customers can place orders daily if they wish.

In addition to its own-brand goods, El Corte Inglés offers a vast range of designer labels and known national and international brands.