Source: Amazon Plans Whole Foods Expansion
Amazon.com has plans to expand Whole Foods stores into more suburbs and other areas across the U.S., according to sources familiar with the plans, reports MarketWatch. The retailer is looking to push more of the grocery chain's stores into new areas where more rural customers can take advantage of its two-hour delivery service. Specific location for new stores haven't been revealed, but a source claims Whole Foods employees have scouted retail spaces in regions of Idaho, southern Utah, and Wyoming. New supermarket stores would also be used to facilitate Amazon delivery and pickup from online orders. Amazon bought the natural grocery retailer in 2017.
Total Retail's Take: As Amazon continues to expand into grocery — both online and brick-and-mortar — it comes as no surprise that Whole Foods will be extending its physical reach into more areas of the U.S. Since Amazon's purchase of the grocer in 2017, the e-commerce giant has been stocking stores with deals for Prime members, in-store pickup for online purchases, and grocery delivery to customers’ homes. Placing Whole Foods stores into areas currently not in range for Amazon's two-hour delivery program creates potential for thousands of new customers — and sign-ups for the Prime membership program. The combination of e-commerce accessibility with fresh, natural foods increases Amazon's standing in the fierce competition among grocery retailers to retain customers in a shifting category.
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Kristina Stidham is the digital content director at Total Retail and sister brands Women in Retail Leadership Circle and Women Leading Travel & Hospitality at NAPCO Media. She is passionate about digital media and handles video, podcast and virtual event production for all brands. You can often find her at WIRLC, TR, WLT&H or industry events with her camera and podcasting equipment—or at home on Zoom—recording interviews with thought leaders and business executives.
Kristina holds a B.A. in Media Studies and Production from the Temple University Klein College of Media and Communication in Philadelphia. Go Owls! When she's not in the office, she loves to go on long walks, sing around the house, hangout with her family and two pet guinea pigs, and travel to new places.
