Whilst I was in the US last week I heard about Favor, a new app which provides a concierge/ delivery service. Although Favor is only available in half a dozen US cities, it seems to be growing very quickly and it’s only a matter of time before it’s available internationally.

Favor enables a customer to order an item from a nearby shop and have it delivered straight away. The average delivery time is 35 minutes. It costs $5 plus 5% of the product(s). The product can be food, dry cleaning, clothing, groceries, etc., although this being America, they won’t deliver alcohol.

The people who deliver the product are called Runners, and their incentive is to earn a minimum $9 (£6) per hour, but can earn twice this.

As soon as I heard about Favor I liked the idea, especially the simplicity of the idea. Amazon are trialling faster delivery options especially in large cities, and Favor solves these need-it-now deliveries at a low cost, although a heavy washing machine is still going to be challenging.

I wouldn’t be surprised if a company such as Amazon or Wall Mart buys Favor soon. At some price point it’s cheaper having paid Runners picking items from a distribution centre than stores.

However, Favor’s downfall is that it’s just too simple to copy. The barrier to entry is tiny, and I expect some UK start-up is building a similar delivery concept.

Right now though, as a consumer I like the Favor app, and I expect it will take off in a similarly successful way as AirBnb.