Amazon buys Whole Foods

[ElsieD]

9 minutes ago, Toliver said:

A tangential article related to Amazon's new ventures:

"Amazon to Launch Delivery Service That Would Vie With FedEx, UPS"

 

The US Post Office should be shaking in their collective boots with this news. If Amazon bypasses the USPS (which doesn't seem to get mentioned in the article), the USPS will lose a ton of money.

The USPS and their shoddy delivery schedules were the rumored reason why Amazon shuttered Amazon Fresh.

After all, it's only "fresh" if it gets delivered on time. 

 

We need for it to expand to Canada as parcel delivery by Canada Post is terrible.  I ordered something from a third party via Amazon which arrived in Canada before Christmas and I got it in January, courtesy of Canada Post.

[rotuts]

of note :

 

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2018/02/latest-prime-perk-5-percent-back-at-whole-foods-with-amazon-visa/

[BeeZee]

Amazon Visa will give you 3% back without Prime membership. Bezos really is looking to lock up every aspect of the consumer buying cycle.

[rotuts]

@BeeZee

 

interesting

 

I get 2 % back on everything with my current CC

 

and I can wait for 25 $ + for a free Amazon delivery as im in no hurry.

 

it is interesting to me the Cc companies have moved back from Free CC's 

 

expecting to make a fortune for later payments and defaults 

 

wasn't that the Last CC Crisis or the One before ?

 

TJ's is right across the street from WF

 

so I can not imagine going into WF

 

Maybe Ill change my mind

 

probably nbot

 

after all

 

TJ's has RedBoat40 for some time

 

50 % less than WF.

 

 

[BeeZee]

@rotuts, edited to say...3% back on WF purchases. Gotta keep that spending in-house!

I get 2% on my current CC as well, with an extra 1% (IIRC) on grocery purchases. So I'm already covered. I shop at WF and other supermarkets and now use my CC for the credits rather than paying cash.

Good deal if you don't carry a balance.

[rotuts]

yep

 

Cc deals are a bir snarky

 

reding carefully on the news release  you may not actually get cash back but cash credit toe get more crap at Amazon.com

 

to make up that 3 $ dif   ( the 2 % CC has no fee ) have to spend 3,333.33 at WF each year

 

when I see people pay cash , I feel like I should tell them about the 2 % card.

 

then paying cash might limit their purchasing which might be their idea.

[rotuts]

Interesting :

 

more stuff at Bezo's Market for Prime Members

 

[F.D.: Im not a prime member , but I own 2 - 4 shares of AMZN ]

 

NYT :  https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/16/technology/whole-foods-discount-amazon-prime.html

 

        might have to delete some cookies to see  Halibut fresh wild is 1/2 off , 9.99   in Florida.

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2018/05/15/amazon-extend-prime-discounts-whole-foods-customers/612231002/

 

etc

 

 

[rotuts]

WSJ had a summary article on Amazon's effects at WF

 

https://www.wsj.com/articles/attention-amazon-prime-members-who-shop-at-whole-foods-youre-in-luck-1529154000?mod=searchresults&page=1&pos=1

 

for review purposes :

 

 

 

I find it odd that the Prime discounts seem to be only in the west and south

 

not the NE.  

 

and :  41 % of WF shoppers don't know Amazon owns WF

 

[ElsieD]

I was in Whole Foods last Sunday and the only difference I noticed was that the place looked "tired" like it needed a good sprucing up.  I bought a couple of things, but not a whole lot.  I did buy a piece of monkfish as the price seemed good for monkfish.

[rotuts]

I don't know why

 

but the ' change ' started in the West ( US ) and  FLA ,   moved down to the SW , then over to the South

 

+/-

 

and will eventually be all WF's

 

F.D, :  have a very low number of shares of AMZN , and you might have a similar number in an Index Fund 

 

Good For Me !

 

but shilling for 3d rate electronics and a fee so you might buy more 

 

makes my couple of shares happy

 

and that's bout it.

 

Ill have to look into a vaccine once the roll-out completes itself in N.E.

 

so I can see the results.

[BeeZee]

They are preparing for the Prime thing and delivery from the WF near my office. Someone in my office who is a regular shopper there said she had noticed things going out of stock more. She has a picky child who eats certain things so she noticed it and asked an employee, who essentially said it was a common thing since the Amazon acquisition. Since I generally shop in the produce area, dairy, and prepared foods, I personally have only seen certain yogurts going out of stock when they are on sale.

[chromedome]

On a related note:

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/06/amazon-buying-online-pharmacy-with-nationwide-reach-drug-store-stocks-dive/

[BeeZee]

Took advantage of the Prime discount on Friday on my way to the office, got 25% off bulk foods and I believe the organic cherries were $1-2 less per pound. I don’t do much shopping at WF, I like it for my office food supplies and lunch (prepared foods). I will shop opportunistically if I see a particularly good deal on fish. I have the luxury of two locations within range, one about 2 miles from my office and one less than 10 miles from my home. They were stacking up the bags for Prime delivery, plenty of orders getting ready on Friday a.m.

[chromedome]

https://techcrunch.com/2018/09/01/heres-whats-changed-at-whole-foods-one-year-into-the-amazon-relationship/?utm_source=pocket&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=pockethits

[ElsieD]

I just read the article and also the interesting comments.  I am not a regular WF shopper although I do or rather did, go there to buy a couple of things no one else carried.  They no longer carry them so I have no need to go there.  The last time I went for those items, the prices were still sky-high and nothing looked very impressive.

[rotuts]

the implication of the article is that the organic produce quality has declined 

 

and there is less of it.

 

I don't shop there as I never felt the prices were justified.

 

there is a TJ's across the street.

 

now that Tj's has RedBoat40 for 1/2 the WF price .....

[lemniscate]

I've actually increased my shopping at Whole Foods since the takeover.  I am a Prime member and I take advantage of the Prime savings when I see something I like, an example was a great value on fresh cod fillets.  Since I am a relatively new shopper to Whole Foods, I can't comment on the decline in quality of produce.  None of the produce I have bought recently has been disappointing (ie cherries, tomatoes, greens), I think there seems to be quite high quality at my local store.  The vast majority of my food shopping is Costco and Trader Joe's, but Whole Foods is creeping up.  I like I get Amazon points to use from the food purchases.  I also like my Whole Foods has a large beer/wine bar that I can get nice deals on growler fills.  I like the app shows me the specials and I check out scanning my phone.  I have not bought any of the prepared foods, it seems that is a large part of the other shoppers content when I am shopping.  The Amazon/Whole Foods merge has been a win for me so far.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I may be reading this wrong...have to pinch myself.  Let me back up a bit:

 

For a while amazon offered me amazon Fresh.  Granted, I had to pay extra over and above the cost of Prime and order two days in advance, but I could get nice foodstuffs delivered to my door.  But then last fall they took it all away.  I was more than a little sad.

 

The local Shoprite is getting better.  Just this week they reintroduced USDA prime beef, of which this afternoon I purchased a small exemplar.  But the gravel trail to Shoprite is through the wetlands, passible on a good dry week at best.  Then a couple days ago there appeared a large orange, officious looking sign:  "On or about 10/17/18 Construction to Begin.  Plan Alternate Route."  A highway sign on a gravel foot trail.  Seriously.

 

Alternate Route.  Nice, if that's an option.

 

Where was I?  Oh, yes.  Tonight amazon is offering me the first fruits of Whole Foods, delivered to my doorstep in one hour.  I can't get to Shoprite and back in one hour.  As I understand this service is included in my Prime membership.  I had been craving duck.  Four hundred and fifty some poultry products to choose from.  Shoprite often has frozen duck.  Whole Foods offers fresh duck.  And I understand from @chefmd they have great Kool-Aid.

 

[rotuts]

I find it interesting that a ' regular ' supermarket is now offering Prime Beef.

 

if , of course . Shoprite is one.

 

Market Basket , end of last week , is also offering Prime Beef.

 

it clientele  might not be in the Market for this

 

and indeed if its really " Prime "

 

odd coincidence 

 

or did beef all of a sudden get Prime-ish ?  or have the standards for Beef been

 

lowered again , as they were possibly in the '80s ?

[gfweb]

I'm struck by the variation in quality within a beef grade. Acme Markets, the big player in SE PA, has choice grade beef that is tasteless and tough. Costco's and WFs choice grade is much better.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

3 hours ago, rotuts said:

I find it interesting that a ' regular ' supermarket is now offering Prime Beef.

 

if , of course . Shoprite is one.

 

Market Basket , end of last week , is also offering Prime Beef.

 

it clientele  might not be in the Market for this

 

and indeed if its really " Prime "

 

odd coincidence 

 

or did beef all of a sudden get Prime-ish ?  or have the standards for Beef been

 

lowered again , as they were possibly in the '80s ?

 

The beef in question is Angus brand prime.  It looks nice, haven't cooked it yet.

 

[rotuts]

Same brand at MarketBasket.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Tonight I spent the slow time at work browsing that which Whole Foods has to offer:  three or four commercial brands of ice cream I would love to taste.  The aforementioned fresh duck.  Cream, real cream.  But it is hard to envision preparing ice cream when your Precise Heat Mixing Bowl is somehow full of chocolate.

 

One catch is that amazon Now expects (but does not require) a tip for the delivery person -- unlike other amazon services where the delivery charge is folded in.  Why amazon can you not just pay your contractors what their time is worth??

 

After a bit of googling I learned that amazon Now has only been offered in this area for the past six days.  So far it is only for purchases from Whole Foods.

 

[gfweb]

7 hours ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

Tonight I spent the slow time at work browsing that which Whole Foods has to offer:  three or four commercial brands of ice cream I would love to taste.  The aforementioned fresh duck.  Cream, real cream.  But it is hard to envision preparing ice cream when your Precise Heat Mixing Bowl is somehow full of chocolate.

 

One catch is that amazon Now expects (but does not require) a tip for the delivery person -- unlike other amazon services where the delivery charge is folded in.  Why amazon can you not just pay your contractors what their time is worth??

 

After a bit of googling I learned that amazon Now has only been offered in this area for the past six days.  So far it is only for purchases from Whole Foods.

 

 

The tip thing is troubling.

[rotuts]

Amazon is cutting back all its costs.

 

Employees  first it seems.