E-commerce juggernaut Amazon looking to win in the $830 billion American grocery market, just as they’ve done in the online market, with plans to open new grocery stores just two years after buying Whole Foods for $13.7 billion. The goal, reports the WSJ, would be to better penetrate the larger grocery market currently dominated by Walmart, Albertson’s, Kroger and Publix. For every Whole Foods there are ten Walmart’s.
“Amazon could be a big threat to the grocery industry,” Ron Johnson CEO of Enjoy.com told CNBC.com.
Whole Foods is more of a niche organic market, the new grocery stores will allow Amazon to sell more mainstream, beauty and traditional products. Whole Foods has been a learning experience for Amazon in preparation to dominate.
Reportedly they plan to open dozens of grocery stores in several major U.S. cities, the new grocery store chain hopes to provide online shopping and delivery.
Brick-and-mortar stores are crucial in the grocery industry because only a fraction of Americans buy fresh food online. Will the new stores be cashierless, or a large scale Amazon Go ‘just walk out shopping’ format, that is yet to be seen. Either way it’s exciting, the first new store may open by the end of this year in Los Angeles.
