Flying Fudgesicles: Flytrex delivering ice cream by drone

With summer just around the corner, drone delivery is about to take your cold cravings to new heights.

Flytrex, an Israel-based drone delivery company, on Wednesday announced that it would be delivering Fudgesicles, Klondikes, Ben & Jerry’s and more to customers in North Carolina and Texas through a new partnership with Unilever’s The Ice Cream Shop. It’s the latest in a string of recent partnerships for Flytrex following those with Jersey Mike’s, It’s Just Wings and others.

Customers in Granbury, Texas, and the towns of Raeford, Fayetteville and Holly Springs, North Carolina, will be able to order from the virtual ice cream brand directly through the Flytrex app. The service will operate in conjunction with longtime Flytrex partner Causey Aviation Unlimited and under a waiver from the FAA, the company can deliver in a radius up to 1 nautical mile.

The company promises flight times of three minutes or less, and orders will be air dropped directly into customers’ backyards. Much like DoorDash or Uber Eats, the app provides updates along the route.

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“Through the new partnership with Unilever’s digital storefront, you can scream for ice cream and have it in just minutes,” said Flytrex CEO and co-founder Yariv Bash. “Why settle for a melted pint in an hour when you can have your ice cream via the skies, cold and delicious too?”

Brands available through the new partnership include Ben & Jerry’s, Breyers, Good Humor, Klondike, Magnum, Popsicle and Talenti. To make things easier for customers, ice cream products will be offered in themed bundles like Chocolate Lovers and Cookie Crunch.

“Not only are we providing an exciting, innovative and ultra-fast way for ice cream fans to enjoy their favorite Unilever ice cream brands, but The Ice Cream Shop and Flytrex have exclusive ice cream bundles available for purchase,” said Russel Lilly, general manager at Unilever North American Ice Cream. “Whether you need some treats to sweeten up your backyard BBQ or are craving a cookie crunch — we’re ready to fly straight to your doorstep.”

Flytrex has been operating in North Carolina since September 2020, when it launched in Fayetteville. By October 2021, it had added Raeford and Holly Springs to the local drone delivery network, and in March, the service expanded to Texas.

Watch: Delivering everything with drones

The company so far has positioned itself as one of the leaders in the young drone delivery space by setting out a clear focus. CEO Bash told Modern Shipper in September that the company is focused exclusively on the suburbs, contrasting with companies like Wing, an Alphabet subsidiary, that are trying to deliver in cities.

Rather, Bash sees the future of drone delivery in the suburbs, where residents often need to travel over a mile to reach the nearest convenience store. In cities, services like DoorDash and Uber Eats dominate because they’re able to deliver quickly over short distances, but their efficacy wanes as the distance between the merchant and customer grows. 

Drone delivery, on the other hand, becomes more efficient when the environment is more spread out because the aircraft don’t need to contend with city infrastructure or compete against the speed of third-party delivery platforms like DoorDash and Uber Eats. Instead, Flytrex is building a competitive advantage against the apps by setting up shop where they’re least efficient.

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Source: freightwaves - Flying Fudgesicles: Flytrex delivering ice cream by drone
Editor: Jack Daleo