
Click and Collect – often referred to as BOPIS (Buy Online, Pick Up In-Store) or curbside pickup – is a retail fulfillment model where customers place orders online and retrieve their purchases at a physical store or designated pickup point. This concept marries e-commerce with brick-and-mortar convenience. Over the past decade, click and collect has evolved from a niche offering to a mainstream expectation. Early adopters like electronics and apparel retailers introduced in-store pickup in the 2010s, but the model truly gained momentum in the late 2010s as big-box chains and grocery stores rolled it out nationwide (Target’s Drive Up Is Red-Hot) (BOPIS Statistics: Good News/Bad News for Retailer's Growth?).
The COVID-19 pandemic (2020) was an inflection point that massively accelerated click-and-collect adoption. With lockdowns and safety concerns, retailers pivoted to curbside-only operations to keep serving customers. For example, Best Buy shifted all stores to curbside pickup in March 2020; its online sales surged 300% during a six-week period of curbside-only service, and about 50% of those online sales were fulfilled via curbside pickup (Business Insider: Retailers made a hard pivot to curbside pickup during the pandemic - AEO-Inc). Across the industry, U.S. click-and-collect sales more than doubled (a +109% increase) in 2020 alone (Buy Online Pick Up In Store Statistics (2024): BOPIS Trends). Retailers large and small rapidly stood up curbside programs – the number of retailers offering BOPIS jumped 54% during 2020 (Buy Online Pick Up In Store Statistics (2024): BOPIS Trends). This emergency-driven expansion established click and collect as a core channel.
Post-pandemic, click and collect has become a standard omnichannel service. Nearly 87% of U.S. retailers now offer a BOPIS option (Buy Online Pick Up In Store Statistics (2024): BOPIS Trends). Even as customers returned to in-person shopping, demand for click and collect remains high due to its convenience. Some retailers adjusted their approaches (e.g. certain chains scaled back curbside pickup as foot traffic returned (Top 500 retailers use of curbside pickup varies)), but market leaders have continued to invest and innovate in click-and-collect services. For instance, major players like Walmart, Target, and Best Buy kept dedicated pickup parking and added mobile app features to streamline the experience (Top 500 retailers use of curbside pickup varies). What started as a way to save shipping time or costs has matured into a strategic omnichannel tool that integrates physical stores with digital shopping. Today, click and collect is not just a pandemic-era convenience but a permanent fixture of U.S. retail, continually evolving with new technologies and consumer expectations.
Click and collect usage has grown explosively and now reaches a significant share of American shoppers. In 2024, an estimated 150.9 million Americans will use some form of click and collect, which is about 53% of the U.S. population (Grocery, in-store pickup drive click-and-collect growth). Of these, roughly 97 million consumers (34.2% of the population) are “regular” BOPIS users who use the service frequently (Buy Online Pick Up In Store Statistics (2024): BOPIS Trends). This broad adoption spans demographics, though younger shoppers lead the way. Over 59% of Millennials and 57% of Gen Z shoppers used click and collect in the past year, compared to ~30% of Gen X and 11% of Boomers (Buy Online Pick Up In Store Statistics (2024): BOPIS Trends). The model has clearly become mainstream for younger, digitally savvy consumers.
Market size and growth reflect this popularity. U.S. click-and-collect retail sales reached $113.2 billion in 2023, accounting for about 9.1% of all e-commerce sales (Buy Online Pick Up In Store Statistics (2024): BOPIS Trends). This share is up from only mid-single digits a few years prior and is still rising. Industry forecasts project click-and-collect sales will hit $132.8 billion in 2024 (approximately +17% year-over-year) and surpass $154 billion by 2025 (Buy Online Pick Up In Store Statistics (2024): BOPIS Trends) (#onlinebusiness #entrepreneur #startup #ecommerce #digitalmarketing | INTVAR AGENCY). Put in context, buy-online-pickup orders are expected to be about 9.7% of U.S. e-commerce sales in 2024, growing to over 13% of e-commerce by 2030 (Buy Online Pick Up In Store Statistics (2024): BOPIS Trends). Notably, click and collect has been outpacing overall e-commerce growth – from 2019 to 2024 it saw a 34.7% CAGR, far faster than e-commerce’s growth (Buy Online Pick Up In Store Statistics (2024): BOPIS Trends). This indicates retailers and shoppers alike are increasingly embracing store pickup options.The grocery sector is a major driver of click-and-collect volume in the U.S. Over three-quarters of all U.S. click-and-collect sales come from grocery orders (Grocery, in-store pickup drive click-and-collect growth). Services like Walmart Grocery Pickup and Kroger’s curbside have brought millions of new users into click and collect. In fact, as of 2024 up to 78.7% of click-and-collect sales are grocery items (food and everyday essentials) (Buy Online Pick Up In Store Statistics (2024): BOPIS Trends). Outside of grocery, many shoppers are content to wait for delivery, so BOPIS growth is somewhat slower in categories like apparel or electronics (Grocery, in-store pickup drive click-and-collect growth). Even so, certain verticals show high pickup usage (e.g. home improvement stores see 40–60% of online orders picked up in-store (BOPIS Statistics: Good News/Bad News for Retailer's Growth?)). During peak seasons and holidays, usage spikes as well – for instance, 28% of American consumers used BOPIS for 2023 winter holiday gift shopping (Buy Online Pick Up In Store Statistics (2024): BOPIS Trends).To summarize the U.S. adoption in a data snapshot, the table below highlights key click-and-collect metrics:
These figures underscore that click and collect is a significant and growing channel in U.S. retail. Over half the country has tried it, and sales volume continues to climb at double-digit rates, even after the pandemic surge. Retail executives can no longer view BOPIS as optional – it is now a fundamental part of the retail landscape, especially in grocery and big-box sectors.
Implementing click and collect provides a range of benefits for both retailers and their customers. A well-optimised BOPIS program can be a win-win, driving sales and satisfaction. Below are the key benefits, supported by data:
To maximize the benefits of click and collect, retailers should follow best practices that optimise the technology, operations, and customer experience. Leading retailers have refined their BOPIS programs through trial and error, and several best practices have emerged:
By adhering to these best practices – from technological integration (inventory and apps) to operational excellence (staff and process) – retailers can optimise their click-and-collect systems. The result is a seamless omnichannel experience where online orders flow efficiently to stores and into customers’ hands. Retailers like Target and Walmart that continually refine these aspects (fast-ready orders, easy parking, app check-in, etc.) have earned high customer satisfaction and strong adoption of their BOPIS offerings. A world-class click-and-collect program requires careful planning and cross-functional coordination, but it pays dividends in customer loyalty and profitability.
While click and collect brings many benefits, it also presents operational and strategic challenges that retailers must navigate. Implementing BOPIS is complex because it straddles online and offline operations. Some of the primary challenges include:... - Inventory Accuracy and Visibility: Maintaining an accurate view of inventory in real time is a major hurdle. Inaccurate inventory data can derail BOPIS – if an item shows as available online but is actually out-of-stock in store, the retailer may have to cancel or split orders, frustrating customers. Two-thirds of retailers have reported that inventory inaccuracies made their BOPIS service inconsistent (Study: 66% Of Retailers Say Inaccurate Inventory Data Creates .... The challenge is especially tough for retailers with legacy inventory systems or silos between e-commerce and store stock. Overcoming this requires significant IT integration or adoption of technologies like RFID tagging for precise stock counts (BOPIS Retail Strategies: Enhancing Customer Experience | SML). For many, this is an ongoing journey; until inventory precision is achieved, BOPIS will face fulfilment hiccups.
Once a click-and-collect service is in place, the next objective is to drive customer adoption (get more shoppers to use it) and ensure high satisfaction so they keep using it. Here are effective strategies retail executives can deploy to boost BOPIS adoption and delight customers:... - Promote the Service Prominently: A surprising number of customers may not realise you offer click and collect, so marketing it is key. Feature the BOPIS option prominently on your website and mobile app (e.g., a clear “Pick up in store – ready within 2 hours!” message). During checkout, highlight the pickup option as fast and free compared to shipping. Retailers should also use email and social media to advertise the convenience of their service, especially around peak seasons (“Skip the shipping fees – buy now, pick up same-day!”). If adoption is low, consider in-store signage and associate training to mention it to customers shopping in person. Awareness is step one: customers won’t choose BOPIS if they don’t know it exists or how it works.
Implementing these strategies can significantly boost customer adoption and satisfaction for click and collect. Essentially, retailers should focus on making BOPIS as easy, fast, and rewarding as possible for the customer. When customers understand the convenience (through marketing), have a great first experience (perhaps aided by an incentive), and see the retailer committed to speed and service, they are likely to become repeat users. High satisfaction in turn leads to word-of-mouth and organic growth of the service. In the competitive retail market, a highly adopted BOPIS program can drive omnichannel sales and deepen customer loyalty.
To illustrate these principles in action, let’s examine how three major U.S. retailers – Walmart, Target, and Best Buy – have implemented and optimised their click-and-collect systems. Each faced different challenges but ultimately leveraged BOPIS to drive growth and serve customers better. These case studies highlight real-world results and lessons learned.
Walmart, the nation’s largest retailer, has made click and collect (particularly grocery pickup) a centerpiece of its omnichannel strategy. Walmart began piloting in-store pickup for general merchandise in the mid-2010s and by 2017 had aggressively expanded Walmart Grocery Pickup – a free service for customers to buy groceries online and collect at their local store. By 2019, Walmart had curbside pickup available at most of its ~4,700 U.S. stores, positioning it strongly when the pandemic hit. During 2020, Walmart’s curbside operations became a lifeline for many shoppers and drove a surge in usage. The impact on Walmart’s business has been profound. Today Walmart is the undisputed leader in online grocery pickup. As of mid-2024, Walmart (excluding Sam’s Club) commands about 37% of the U.S. online grocery market – an all-time high share (Walmart captures a record 37% of U.S. eGrocery sales in Q2 2024). A major factor is its extensive curbside pickup network. In grocery e-commerce, pickup is the dominant fulfilment method, representing roughly 45–50% of online grocery orders industry-wide (Walmart breaks record with Q2 online grocery share - Chain Store Age). Walmart has capitalised on this: it captured an estimated 58% of all U.S. online grocery pickup orders in Q2 2024 (The Supply Side: Walmart leads in online grocery with 37% of U.S. ..., far more than any competitor. This dominance suggests that millions of Americans habitually use Walmart’s click-and-collect for their weekly shopping.
Key results and practices: Walmart’s average customer satisfaction with grocery pickup has been high, thanks to efforts to streamline the experience. Customers can schedule one-hour pickup slots, and Walmart associates load the groceries into their car. The convenience and no-fee model make adoption easy. Walmart also integrated features like mobile check-in: using the Walmart app, customers alert the store when they’re on the way, improving speed. On the backend, Walmart invested in technology like picking algorithms and even experimented with automation (they installed 17-foot pickup towers in stores as automated pickup kiosks for general merchandise). However, a lesson learned was to focus on what customers used most – by 2021 Walmart found curbside pickup had far outpaced the pickup towers, and it decided to remove or “hibernate” over 1,300 of those giant machines (Walmart ditching massive pick-up towers in hundreds of stores). Resources were redirected to curbside improvements, like more staging areas and employee training for grocery picking. This pivot shows Walmart’s responsiveness to consumer preferences: it doubled down on curbside service where demand was greatest.
Walmart’s click-and-collect journey also highlighted the importance of integration. It unified its grocery app and Walmart.com app so customers can buy any item (food or general merchandise) and pick up in one trip. It also expanded pickup to new categories (e.g., adding curbside pharmacy pickup in 2022). The result is a convenient one-stop pickup experience. The success is evident – Walmart’s overall U.S. e-commerce growth has been driven by store fulfilment. In late 2022, Walmart noted that strong store pickup and delivery helped online sales grow 24%, with “in-store fulfilled pickup and delivery” leading the growth (Pickup and Delivery Drive Walmart's 24% eCommerce Surge, as ...). The Walmart case illustrates that massive scale BOPIS is possible: by leveraging its store network, focusing on grocery (a high-frequency driver), and continuously enhancing the process, Walmart turned click and collect into a competitive advantage that extends its brick-and-mortar leadership into the digital age.
Target has emerged as a click-and-collect leader, known for its exceptionally user-friendly “Drive Up” curbside service. Target began testing Drive Up (curbside pickup) in 2017 and rolled it out nationwide by 2019 (Target’s Drive Up Is Red-Hot), alongside traditional in-store Order Pickup at its service counters. This early investment paid off enormously during the pandemic: Target’s Drive Up sales skyrocketed 600% in early 2020, and still grew over 500% in the latter half of 2020 (Target’s Drive Up Is Red-Hot). Even after that initial boom, Target sustained triple-digit Drive Up growth into 2021 (Target’s Drive Up Is Red-Hot). By 2022, Target was fulfilling over half of its digital orders through same-day services (Drive Up, Order Pickup, or home delivery via Shipt) (OTHER INFORMATION Table of Contents Index to Financial ...), and these same-day options accounted for more than 10% of Target’s total sales (
Target Q4 Results Top Estimates; Sees Q1, FY23 Earnings Below Market
) – a huge share for a company with $100B+ revenue. In short, click and collect has become central to Target’s business model.
What sets Target apart is its relentless focus on customer experience and innovation in BOPIS. Target’s Drive Up has consistently been the company’s highest-rated fulfillment service (even higher satisfaction than delivery) (Top 500 retailers use of curbside pickup varies). The retailer achieved this by listening to customers and adding thoughtful features:
These enhancements not only improved satisfaction but spurred higher adoption – they give customers more and more reasons to choose Drive Up. Target’s data shows that offering such conveniences deepened customer engagement: guests who use Drive Up spend ~30% more than before, indicating increased frequency and broader baskets (Target’s Drive Up Is Red-Hot). Another lesson from Target is strong integration of channels. Target leveraged its stores as hubs (over 95% of online orders are fulfilled from stores now), and it consciously framed BOPIS not as cannibalizing store sales but augmenting them. CEO Brian Cornell noted that guests use Target “because of our stores and our digital options, not one vs. the other” (Target’s Drive Up Is Red-Hot), emphasizing synergy.
Target’s success was also operational – it managed to keep efficiency even as volume exploded. By late 2022, with growth stabilizing, Target’s same-day services still grew 4.3% in Q4 on top of the huge prior gains (Target Q4 Results Top Estimates; Sees Q1, FY23 Earnings Below Market). The retailer has essentially made Drive Up a hallmark of its brand. The lesson from Target is the power of customer-centric innovation: by making click and collect ultra-convenient (fast, free, with delightful extras) and integrating it tightly with loyalty and store operations, Target drove high adoption. Smaller retailers can take note of how Target differentiates its curbside service (e.g. special perks like curbside returns) to stand out in a crowded market.
Best Buy, the electronics retailer, provides a slightly different case – it has long used BOPIS as a way to compete against online-only rivals and to keep customers in its ecosystem. Even before the pandemic, Best Buy was known for a high rate of in-store pickup. Customers buying electronics often chose to order online and pick up at their nearest Best Buy, to get the item same-day and consult with staff if needed. In 2018, Best Buy reported that about 40% of its online orders were picked up in a store (Best Practices for Adopting a BOPIS Model | Parcel Pending). This figure remained strong and even grew: by 2023, nearly 43% of Best Buy’s online sales were picked up in stores (Best Buy online sales drop again in Q3). This is a remarkably high proportion, showing how integral BOPIS is to Best Buy’s business model. It reflects conscious strategy – Best Buy positioned its stores as convenient pickup points, leveraging their national footprint to provide almost-instant gratification on tech products.
During the 2020 store closures, Best Buy leaned heavily on curbside pickup to sustain sales. In fact, from March to June 2020 when stores were curbside-only, the chain achieved massive online growth (domestic online revenue +242% in Q2 2020 (Best Buy Saw a 242% Surge in Online Sales, As ... - Business Insider)). Nearly half of those online orders were fulfilled via curbside, as noted earlier (Business Insider: Retailers made a hard pivot to curbside pickup during the pandemic - AEO-Inc). This omnichannel strength helped Best Buy “cancel out” some of the pandemic downturn – it even led to Best Buy’s best quarter in 25 years by one measure, largely thanks to curbside pickup and delivery combining with online sales (Best Buy just had its best quarter in 25 years with home delivery ...). The company’s CEO Corie Barry highlighted how the quick pivot to curbside kept employees working and served customers’ urgent needs for home office equipment safely (Why Best Buy's CEO thinks the appointment-only shopping strategy ...). A lesson here is that a well-established BOPIS infrastructure can provide tremendous agility in crisis – Best Buy essentially became an online retailer with local pickup locations overnight.
Post-pandemic, Best Buy has continued to integrate its channels. It upgraded its mobile app to enhance store-mode features; like others, it offers an “I’m on my way” check-in for curbside (Best Practices for Adopting a BOPIS Model | Parcel Pending). Best Buy also experimented with store design changes – some stores allocate more space for order pickup and even use lockers in select locations for after-hours pickup. On the inventory side, Best Buy adjusted its fulfillment: by 2022 it shifted more e-commerce orders back to regional distribution centers for shipping, while still fulfilling 62% of online orders from stores (either via pickup or ship-from-store) (Best Buy increases reliance on distribution centers for customer ...). This indicates a balance to optimize costs while maintaining store pickup convenience for those who want it.
The result is that Best Buy has one of the highest BOPIS usage rates in retail, which helps it compete with Amazon by leveraging its physical presence. Customers enjoy the ability to get a laptop or TV the same day and consult Geek Squad if needed, something pure online competitors can’t offer. Best Buy’s case study teaches the importance of aligning BOPIS with category characteristics: electronics customers often research online and want the product immediately – Best Buy’s omnichannel approach fulfills that demand. It also shows that store pickup can account for a large share of online sales if executed well and if it truly addresses customer needs (immediacy, assurance, etc.). In essence, Best Buy turned BOPIS from a convenience into a cornerstone of its customer value proposition in the electronics market.
Comparison of Key Metrics and Features: The table below summarizes how these three retailers have performed and what unique approaches they use in their click-and-collect programs:
Each of these retailers leveraged their strengths – Walmart its store network and grocery dominance, Target its customer experience focus, Best Buy its product expertise and urgency – to excel in click and collect. The common thread is that strategic investment and continuous refinement of BOPIS paid off in both customer satisfaction and financial performance.
The click-and-collect model continues to evolve, and retail executives should stay attuned to emerging trends that are shaping its future in the U.S. market. As of 2024–2025, some notable trends and innovations include:
In conclusion, click and collect in 2025 is marked by innovation and refinement. Retailers are broadening the scope of services (returns, add-ons), using technology (lockers, AI) to improve efficiency, and tailoring their strategies to customer behaviors and preferences. The competitive landscape continues to push new ideas – what was novel (curbside pickup) is now standard, so retailers differentiate with even greater convenience or unique experiences. For retail executives, staying ahead in click and collect means continually monitoring these trends, piloting new features, and scaling up the ones that resonate with customers. The convenience revolution that BOPIS began is still underway, and those who keep innovating will strengthen their connection with the modern omnichannel consumer.
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