NEW YORK – Market Watch reports that Costco Wholesale Corp. is launching a delivery service for customers in the Tampa, Florida, metro area through a partnership with membership-based online grocery delivery service Shipt. The service will deliver groceries, including perishable items, but not apparel, furniture or electronics.

The news source writes that Shipt is the latest addition to the list of services offering delivery of Costco purchases. Instacart, for example, offers delivery within an hour in states including Arizona, Colorado, California and New York. Shipt currently serves 17 million households in 35 markets and plans to be in 50 markets by the end of the 2017.

U.S. online grocery sales, including consumables and food and beverage, totaled $34 billion in 2014, according to a Cowen & Company report. Market Watch notes that analysts estimate that sales could reach $177 billion by 2022. The survey found that “about 12% of U.S. grocery shoppers bought groceries online on average throughout 2016” with older millennials ages 25 to 34 purchasing twice the overall average.

Shipt CEO Bill Smith told the news source that moms with small children are a large segment of Shipt’s customer base. “If you want to go to Costco, it’s a process,” he said. “Consumers will order and purchase more frequently if they can have the items delivered.”

Earlier this month, Meijer announced that it is bringing home delivery across its six-state footprint. Beginning on March 29, Meijer customers in Grand Rapids with a Shipt membership can shop 55,000 in-store items using the Shipt smartphone app or place orders directly through shipt.com. Customers can schedule their orders to be delivered in as little as one hour, seven days a week. Meijer and Shipt will also launch the service in Fort Wayne and the Indianapolis area in April. Other major markets in the Midwest will be announced in the coming months.