Your next Uber ride may have a minifridge stocked with snacks

A car with an Uber logo on it drives down the street in New York, U.S., July 27, 2018. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

In late 2014, Uber Technologies Inc began testing a service called Uber Essentials. It was based on the premise that the most popular items from convenience stores could be made even more convenient. 

“We were wrong,” says Jason Droege, vice-president of Uber Everything. “In D.C., I sat in a car for six hours and got two orders. We discovered retail is not as simple as putting 200 items in a Toyota Highlander.”