Uber now has gift cards too
Jennifer Van Grove
Contact Reporter
Lyft has gift cards, and now Uber does, too. The ride-hail giant Monday announced its plans to sell physical cards at 35,000 brick-and-mortar locations across the country.
Uber gift cards will be sold at U.S. Walmart, Target and CVS stores in the coming weeks, with cards available in denominations ranging from $15 to $200. The company also plans to let shoppers purchase the cards directly from itswebsite at a later date.
The announcement comes in plenty of time for the holidays, the quintessential season for gift-card giving and receiving. Last year, for the ninth year running, gift-cards were the most-requested holiday gift in the National Retail Foundation’s annual consumer survey. That season, the association expected Americans to spend an average of $153 on gift cards with total spending approaching $26 billion.
Uber’s gift card push also trails a similar initiative from rival Lyft, which started hawking $20 gift cards at Starbucks stores in the U.S. last month. Though seemingly incongruous with the digital appeal of mobile-only ride-hail apps, gift cards give both companies an opportunity to appeal to a wider swath of the population.
Jennifer Van Grove
Contact Reporter
Lyft has gift cards, and now Uber does, too. The ride-hail giant Monday announced its plans to sell physical cards at 35,000 brick-and-mortar locations across the country.
Uber gift cards will be sold at U.S. Walmart, Target and CVS stores in the coming weeks, with cards available in denominations ranging from $15 to $200. The company also plans to let shoppers purchase the cards directly from itswebsite at a later date.
The announcement comes in plenty of time for the holidays, the quintessential season for gift-card giving and receiving. Last year, for the ninth year running, gift-cards were the most-requested holiday gift in the National Retail Foundation’s annual consumer survey. That season, the association expected Americans to spend an average of $153 on gift cards with total spending approaching $26 billion.
Uber’s gift card push also trails a similar initiative from rival Lyft, which started hawking $20 gift cards at Starbucks stores in the U.S. last month. Though seemingly incongruous with the digital appeal of mobile-only ride-hail apps, gift cards give both companies an opportunity to appeal to a wider swath of the population.
