Amazon facing challenge from new London delivery startup

NearSt is causing a stir in the capital as it stands up to the big boys. Users enter their postcode into the company's website or app, and order the book for instant collection, or spoedy delivery.

Co-founder Nick Brackenbury did not shirk the responsibility of providing a serious challenge to the ecommerce giant in its book sales, when speaking with the Guardian.

“We think finding and buying something from a shop nearby should always be faster and easier than ordering it online. After all, there are hundreds of bookshops all over London, right on customers’ doorsteps," Brackenbury told the paper.

He believes that it has almost become too easy for customers to flock to Amazon and other such sites, as local shops get lost in the plethora of online possibilities, and as a result dominated by the big boys.

"Today their inventory is invisible to shoppers’ smartphones, making an online retailer the easiest choice. With NearSt we’re changing that, by putting the incredible range and value of local shops within just a couple taps of someone’s smartphone.”

Similar to the likes of food delivery service JustEat, the app uses scooter and bike services to get their products to customers fast. They don't charge a set-up or affiliation fee, but take a 6% cut from the price of each sale.

“The key is that shops don’t need to change what they’re doing, or start using some new technology, like an iPad at the till, or anything like that,” says Brackenbury.

“We then show this inventory through our site to shoppers searching for their books nearby. Shoppers can then place an order in just a couple of taps, pay, and have their book ready for instant in-store collection or delivery within the hour.”

Response to the service has been good thus far, according to the co-founder. He says the majority of thgeir business thus far has come from word-of-mouth, but that they have an exciting development in the mix.

Brackenbury did not reveal too much in this regard, butsaid that it will have a "connection to Google … that will make product discovery outside our site and app a doddle”.