TheStreet on LinkedIn: Amazon tries to win back key customer group it lost during Covid (2024)

Amazon debuts #grocery #subscription Amazon has rolled out a "low-cost" grocery delivery subscription in 3,500 US locations. Prime members pay $9.99/month, while EBT card users pay $4.99/month for free delivery on orders over $35 from Amazon Fresh, Whole Foods, and local retailers like Rite Aid. The subscription offers one-hour delivery windows and priority access to weekly orders. Similar subscriptions by Walmart and Target cost $98 or $99 annually with the same order minimums.Read the full article here-#retail #retailinnovation #retailers #retailindustry #retailsolutions #retailnews #retailstrategy #retailanalytics

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“As we do new things, we accept that we may be misunderstood for long periods of time.”Startup founders, inventors and innovators: remember this every day as you try to change the world.But also hold yourself to high bars of asking tough questions about your assumptions and hypothesis. The fine balance between excitement and the real world is where the best products and companies are made.I’m WIP on this and learning every day 🖖🏻 but seeing how teams in Amazon (and may other orgs) are also on the same path is proof there is truth to the practice. #startups #founders #innovation #invention #management #longterm

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A new grocery delivery service from Amazon launched today that has an option for residents with #SNAP #EBT to pay $4.99 a month without the Prime membership for grocery ordering. You can get free delivery for orders over $35.00 and pick up. Rolling out to 3,500 cities but I couldn't find a list to see if #Anchorage was on the list. The Anchorage i-team did some research a while back on grocery ordering online for pickup or delivery with #EBT, and many residents (especially with kids) said it would make a big difference and save them time and stress. I'm also looking forward to #WIC #EBT online ordering with delivery being available in the future, based on ongoing pilots. #OnlineOrdering #GroceryDelivery #SNAP #EBT #FoodSecurityhttps://lnkd.in/gmTdvNCK

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Amazon is bringing back free(ish) grocery deliveries for orders over $35 in the form of a new monthly subscription program the companyannounced today. It’s $9.99 per month for Amazon Prime members and includes unlimited one-hour grocery delivery where it’s available, as well as unlimited 30-minute grocery pickups, with a half-cost option for low-income non-Prime members who qualify.Amazon launched a trial of the subscription in three cities last year but now says it’s available in 3,500 cities across the US. Deliveries include groceries from Whole Foods Market and Amazon Fresh but also local grocers and specialty retailers that it’s partnered with. Subscribers get “priority access” for recurring weekly groceries, too.This new subscription could be a boon for those participating in the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), as it can often be harder for them, physically, to get groceries, either due to time or physical limitations. #amazon #delivery #amazonprime #grocert #ebt #techhttps://lnkd.in/gWhe_Ckg

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Amazon announced today a $10 incentive for packages held for pick up versus delivered. It is however limited to order size of $25 or more and applicable to locations such as Whole Foods, Amazon Fresh or Kohl's stores. It is worth checking out: https://lnkd.in/gWgRH_fVIt got me thinking about a variation on this theme from at least 30 years ago. Back when dinosaurs roamed the Earth, Federal Express (not yet FedEx) offered a $3 drop off discount. At the time, there were somewhere around 8-10K drop boxes and manned facilities.Why did Federal Express give up $3 of revenue? The alternative was on call pickups that were the most expensive pick up stops. It caused couriers to zig and zag in their routes. By consolidating in drop off points with standard "close times", it only took 3 packages per day to get a return on a drop box and 50 per day with a manned location. The drop off network was also a marketing advantage vs. competitors at the time like Airborne, Emery and UPS, plus building managers thought it added value to their building.However, the $3 drop off incentive was only a part of the value prop. Shippers told us they liked not having to hang around and worry if the Federal Express courier made the pick up. In addition, many office and shipping managers told us it gave them an excuse to get out of the office or go home early even if the drop off location was in their building or office park.Fast forward to the spiffy new Amazon $10 hold for pick-up incentive, albeit limited to $25+ order value and picked up at locations such as Whole Foods, Amazon Fresh or Kohl's stores. These types of retail outlets are not the easiest to get in, out and park which may be the very definition of inconvenience at rush hour. Amazon has none of the value and psychology with their customers that Federal Express did back in the day with B2B shippers. Let's say Amazon's variable expense for a DSP delivery might be as low as $1. But just for fun, let's say it is 4x that. While there are more packages per delivery stop, doesn't it reduce their density in the neighborhoods they still delivery to? In addition, don't they have to pay the retailer who holds the packages a fee as well?How then does Amazon ever get a return on their $10 incentive? Is it a temporary promotion to get people used to picking up? Is it to increase lifetime value from existing Amazon customers? Does it help to generate sales in the stores when consumers go in to pick up their package? Is it something else? Is it a flawed concept?I don't know, but here is what I do know. The Federal Express customer liked dropping off for perceived convenience. The $3 savings helped them justify to their boss why they were dropping off since the $3 did not go to the person dropping off. The $10 is a big incentive, but is it at odds with their customer's view of convenience?

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Amazon now offers Fresh grocery delivery to non-Prime members in select US cities Amazon is making its Fresh grocery delivery service available to people without Prime memberships in select U.S. cities. In the past, Fresh grocery delivery was only available to people who had a Prime subscription. With this expansion, people in a dozen cities, including Austin, TX, Boston, MA, Charlotte, N.C., Dallas-Fort Worth, TX, Denver, CO, Nashville, TN, Phoenix, AZ, Portland, OR, Richmond, VA, Sacramento, CA, San Diego, CA and San Francisco, CA. will be able to order groceries online from Amazon Fresh stores and warehouses. Non-Prime members who place an order under $50 will have to pay a $13.95 fee, while people who place an order between $50 and $100 will have to pay a $10.95 fee. Orders over $100 will have a $7.95 fee. “We’re always looking for more ways to make grocery shopping easy, fast, and affordable for all of our customers, and are excited to offer Amazon Fresh grocery delivery to customers without a Prime membership in a dozen U.S. cities,” said Claire Peters, the worldwide vice president of Amazon Fresh, in an emailed statement. “Now even more Amazon customers can benefit from our high-quality grocery experience, with Prime members continuing to save on gr...

This is great for business if Amazon is an independent channel. With recent evidence by both Google and Amazon, this independence is uncertain. Should they they be a utility or a for profit company? Where should they be an independent party and where can they make profit.

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Another #amazon foray into #grocery delivery meant to drive adoption among Prime members (see link). The question is ...consumers already pay for Prime, do they want to pay another 10 bucks for grocery delivery (which used to be free for orders over $35) from a grocer they don't normally use (Whole Foods not withstanding)...the jury is out. As a comparison, Kroger charges $6.95 and doesn't accept tips. Instacart has a $9.99 monthly option but other fees are often tied to each order and so are tips. The economics of the last mile grocery delivery continue to inspire experimentation, innovation, failure and stickiness ...seemingly all at the same time.https://lnkd.in/gi4TZRnh

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Amazon Launches $9.99 Grocery Delivery Subscription in the USAmazon shakes up the grocery delivery market in the US this week as they announced a new, low-cost subscription plan for US Amazon Prime Members and recipients of government food assistance benefits (EBT). With the new subscription plan, qualified customers can enjoy unlimited grocery deliveries for orders above $35 on Amazon Fresh, Whole Foods Market, and retailers on Amazon.com like Cardenas Markets LLC, The Save Mart Companies, Bartell Drugs, RITE AID, and Pet Food Express.The plan is currently priced at $9.99 per month for existing Prime members and $4.99 for customers with registered EBT cards but without a prime membership. Qualified customers also get a 30-day free trial to test this new delivery subscription plan. The subscription also includes additional benefits like a one-hour delivery window and unlimited 30-minute pick-ups.So, how does this new offering of Amazon stack up against its competitors? A similar subscription plan, Walmart Plus, costs $12.95 per month or $98 yearly, While an annual subscription Target’s Circle 360 costs $95 per year. In comparison, Amazon’s new grocery delivery subscription undercuts Walmart Plus’ monthly plan by a few dollars. The company is yet to announce if they are also planning to offer this subscription on an annual basis.This move by Amazon comes after a successful trial in several US cities late last year. With the EBT benefit, it is also making grocery delivery more accessible to low-income families. Industry analysts believe this is a strategic move by Amazon to grab a larger share of the online grocery market and to expand its fresh food business.#Amazon #AmazonFresh #grocerydelivery #deliveryriders #USA #Walmart #Target

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I am a numbers guy and don't see how Wonder's Marc Lore can ever achieve profitability with his high capex, 2-step production process (partial cooking in a commissary kitchens and then finishing entrees in Wonder restaurants in Walmarts) at a price point that will work for Walmart customers. What will he do after investors money runs out?However, at XOOM FOODS, we have pioneered an innovative model that overcomes the deficiencies of existing food delivery models, allowing us to deliver restaurant food without delivery fees and tips while having the best unit economics in the industry. We have zero capex and very low operating expenses because we don’t make any food ourselves. We have no food production facilities, no raw material inventory, no cooked meals inventory, no warehouses, no cold storage, and no wastage. We aggregate customers’ orders weekly and then give bulk orders to a small group of carefully selected and vetted restaurants in advance, let them cook in their off-peak times and use the massive unused capacity they have between lunch and dinner times, and then ship to customers in cold boxes using Fedex and UPS.Essentially, we are creating a 3rd option for people to get restaurant food - in addition to the existing options of restaurant dining and ordering delivery, which are both time-consuming and costly - through our novel restaurant meal subscription that makes heat-and-eat restaurant food more affordable and convenient than all other options. With XOOM FOODS, a $20 Fettuccine Alfredo from a decent restaurant will still cost $20 including shipping instead of $35 for a Doordash delivery.

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