What do you think of the Amazon purchase of Whole Foods

[dish rag]

Never bought from amazon, there are several Whole Foods very close by, never shopped at one. So for me I really don't care.

 

[Westcoastwild]

It depends on where you live. I'd think there are the quirky local markets all over the country, although proximity to produce can be big deal in terms of price. Even so, a lot of produce and other items aren't always local.

I live near Berkeley. They actually two Whole Foods now. I almost never shop at them because I can't see the value. My preference is a local outlet called Berkeley Bowl, which was named because their original location was in a former bowling alley. They are a local institution. They have an extremely wide range of produce (conventional and organic), bulk items, a cheese counter, regular packaged goods, beer/wine, a bakery, etc. It's kind of like Whole Foods, although a lot less expensive and I feel far less pretentious.

The place I go to seems to get really great deals, even though they only have two markets and wouldn't seem to have the buying power of a lot of supermarkets. However, they also can buy odd-lot specials from wholesalers of limited quanties at special prices, and I don't think that's something that a lot of large retailers could handle. It's not necessarily local produce either. I see good prices on apples from Washington, strawberries from the Salinas Valley, oysters from British Columbia, imported produce from Mexico or Chile, etc. The oddest thing I'd seen was blueberries at a great price. They were labeled for export to Japan. I think it might have been a shipment that couldn't make it too Japan (nothing particular wrong with it), and they were willing to take it. I rather like the grab bag nature of random specials.

That does sound awesome! But the local places I've been to here are either harder to reach or less comprehensive than Whole Foods. The place that sells odd lot stuff has the packaged stuff but terrible produce.

I just don't like the idea/assumption that amazon is blazing trails that one day we will buy EVERYTHING online and stores will be obsolete.
Plus the few times I've used amazon was to purchase college textbooks 10+ years ago and EVERY single time, I would get a call from a couple weeks later that card was compromised. It didn't matter if it was a credit card or bank card.

I don't think the normal people are saying that. The techies maybe or the tinfoil hats. But most people are well aware that they can't get everything they want on Amazon. I don't know anyone normal who shops solely through Amazon even if they do a lot of their shopping online. Or even anyone who shops one stop shopping in general. I shop at chains like target or fredd Meyer but I certainly don't buy everything in those places unless they're the only game in town. Online shopping (and sears Roebuck before it) has diversified shopping, not put it in the hands of a few places.

 

[bcla]

That does sound awesome! But the local places I've been to here are either harder to reach or less comprehensive than Whole Foods. The place that sells odd lot stuff has the packaged stuff but terrible produce.

Depends on what kind of odd lots. Grocery Outlet (which was based in Berkeley for the longest time before moving to Emeryville) has more of a model of buying odd lots of packaged foods. Their produce and meat is bought like most supermarket chains. I understand that because of small quantities of these odd items, each location (which is franchised) might negotiate its own purchases or might take advantage of a large buy from the chain as a whole.

Berkeley Bowl has a model of buying produce that a wholesaler wants to move quickly. Safeway doesn't really have the option of buying that kind of produce. I remember buying a case of 18 yellow mangoes for $5, when the typical price would have been $1.25 each. They have stuff like pre-bagged produce specials where you have to take the whole bag. They have a mix of staples, exotic stuff, and selection. Now that it's strawberry season in California, there could be up to five different selections of 1 lb clamshells at different prices. Most of what they sell isn't necessarily specials, but they develop a relationship with the wholesalers and sometimes the farms themselves to get better prices. Often they will specify the source if it's a well know farm, like Christopher Ranch garlic.

The thing they don't do is try to look fancy. Whole Foods spends a lot of money prettying everything up.

 

[Imzadi]

I've read that the idea is that in the future we should be able to order things like produce online and it will be delivered right to our homes, and maybe even at a reduced cost, since this is part of what Amazon does.

This sounds great in theory, but in application, the way Amazon has their system set up now does not work for me. And I unfortunately don't expect them to change, even with the acquisition of Whole Foods. (Whole Foods isn't a store I buy a lot from anyway. There is a mom & pop health food store in my neighborhood that I make my organic purchases from as I prefer to support the small business.)

Several months ago, I was talking to another resident in my apartment building. She mentioned that several residents, like her, get paper goods & food staples delivered from Amazon as their prices are cheaper than what we pay at the stores here. So I did some research.

In order to have the majority of packaged food staples delivered, one MUST have a Amazon Prime membership AND most food items (I want) are sold in BULK amounts (full cases or 12-packs) AND one must order them through their subscription services (X number of cases delivered every month or so) to get the best prices. I won't shell out the money for the Amazon Prime membership because then delivery isn't really "free". It's pre-paid for with the membership money. Instead, for all my non-food purchases, I have always added enough items to my cart, and when I have $35 for their free shipping, I buy.

I don't have a family the size of the Brady Bunch or the Waltons. I don't have a huge pantry area or garage storage for a 12-pack of chick peas AND a 12-pack of kidney beans AND different 12-packs of each of the various other food pantry items I want. I don't want to be subject to a subscription service as I don't know when I will run out of items, or want to be responsible to later change the subscriptions around so items will & won't be delivered when I do & don't need them.

Then I researched and found Walmart and Target deliver food staple items too. I can buy individual items in any number I please, in different amounts each order. Just like when I actually shop in their brick & mortar stores. NO bulk case or 12-pack minimums imposed. No memberships or subscription requirements. Just the same $35 minimum for really free delivery.

AND as the fellow building resident said, I found that their prices per can or item for name brand items, are much less than shopping in the local grocery stores here. Del Monte veggies (all non-GMO) are each $1 less per can! I usually order laundry detergent, shampoo or other non-food items too and are well over the $35 order minimum.

For perishables, several local grocery stores do deliver, but like several PP, I am too picky. I need to choose my own produce, fish & meats.


I think for people with health problems, the elderly, are disabled or shouldn't be driving, (recent thread on a DH with progressing Alzheimer's,) for caregivers who need to stay home, or when they can get out, use that time for other things, for those living in the boonies & spend a lot on gas to shop, for those who are into stockpiling and have items delivered free, food deliveries are a great service.

But, until Amazon removes their current requirements, I'm sticking with Walmart & Target.

 

[Imzadi]

I think it's an odd mix. I don't see how Whole Foods maintains its brand with Bezos at the helm. I go to Amazon for bargains; I don't view WF as a bargain brand. Of course, they're failing while being perceived as being Whole Paycheck, so maybe they need a complete reboot. I don't shop there. A few times with those prices cured me of that.

Me too. That's why I was kind of surprised that they put so many restrictions/rules on buying their food items, with needing Amazon Prime and selling in bulk cases or 12-packs. As I mentioned in a previous post, I can get well over a $35 minimum by buying an assortment of items from Walmart & Target instead. And from a YouTube video I saw of Amazon's operations, they have computerized arms & robot machinery plucking out the items people buy and dropping them into boxes. So, it's not like they are spending an hourly wage on a human worker slowly pulling out 4 cans over a 12-pack of the same item.

 

[Disney_traveler]

That does sound awesome! But the local places I've been to here are either harder to reach or less comprehensive than Whole Foods. The place that sells odd lot stuff has the packaged stuff but terrible produce.




I don't think the normal people are saying that. The techies maybe or the tinfoil hats. But most people are well aware that they can't get everything they want on Amazon. I don't know anyone normal who shops solely through Amazon even if they do a lot of their shopping online. Or even anyone who shops one stop shopping in general. I shop at chains like target or fredd Meyer but I certainly don't buy everything in those places unless they're the only game in town. Online shopping (and sears Roebuck before it) has diversified shopping, not put it in the hands of a few places.

It wasn't techies or tin foil hats. One was an evening news anchor or reporter all excited for it and then our podunk local news talking about finally getting to live like the Jetsons. But neither of those are normal people either

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I'm not quite sure how they fit into Amazon's business model, but they have enough cash that even a total failure could be survived.

I get that Whole Foods may fit well into communities where they may be the best option. However, I live in an area where there are lots of alternatives that cost less, yet Whole Foods seems to do quite well anyways.

My thought is they were trying to expand brick and mortar type places since a lot of what they own is related to digital aspect but who knows. They have their own brick and mortar places they are sorta piloting so I was thinking maybe they want to expand in that way.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I don't shop at Whole Foods. We have 3 locations in my immediate area just on my side of the state line.

We also have 2 Trader Joe's locations in my area (one close enough to me and on just on the other side of the state line).

Costco at least last year surpassed Whole Foods in the number of Organic products it sells (and I've got 2 Costcos near my on my side of the state line).

I'm interested in seeing what direction Amazon takes with Whole Foods because I see multiple things they can do.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Me too. That's why I was kind of surprised that they put so many restrictions/rules on buying their food items, with needing Amazon Prime and selling in bulk cases or 12-packs. As I mentioned in a previous post, I can get well over a $35 minimum by buying an assortment of items from Walmart & Target instead. And from a YouTube video I saw of Amazon's operations, they have computerized arms & robot machinery plucking out the items people buy and dropping them into boxes. So, it's not like they are spending an hourly wage on a human worker slowly pulling out 4 cans over a 12-pack of the same item.

Have you ever shopped at a warehouse type store?? Buying in bulk or large packaging is by no means an Amazon only thing.

As far as Amazon's operations......they employ quite a lot of people. It's not just robots and machinery in their warehouse. We've got a few very large Amazon centers near me-the newest one has about 1,000 PART TIME employees PLUS many managerial and support roles to support customer fulfillment.

Do you own a vehicle? You may be surprised to learn that your vehicle is typically made on an assembly line full of robots and machines. People still work there and still do jobs.

As far as shopping at Walmart you may want to take a look at some documentaries on them. They are one of the biggest bullies around. I remember watching one where they had Rubbermaid telling them they couldn't afford to make their products with the profit margin Walmart was giving them all because Walmart said "hey if you want your product sold in our stores you will sell it at this price". I still shop at Walmart quite a lot but I also understand the not to pleasant aspect of doing business especially while trying to maintain a certain price point.

 

[AppleDumpling]

I buy stuff from Amazon all the time. Have never been to Whole Foods; there's only one within 20 miles of me and it's not a convenient location.

As for home delivery of food, there are several local supermarkets that offer this service, most through Peapod, which has been around for at least a decade. I personally like shopping in a store, but can understand the convenience factor for certain people and certain situations. As pp said, it is wonderful for elderly and home-bound people. The problem is that many in that demographic do not have computers or smartphones. A friend of mine orders for her mom and says that the service is excellent, well worth the delivery fee, and the quality of the produce and meat they get are top notch (but you can always send back any item if you're not satisfied).

Amazon already has their version of home delivery with Amazon Fresh. What will be different other than Whole Foods being the supplier? All I hear about Whole Foods is that it's pricey. So maybe this Amazon deal will result in lower prices.

 

[Albort]

I think it's an odd mix. I don't see how Whole Foods maintains its brand with Bezos at the helm. I go to Amazon for bargains; I don't view WF as a bargain brand. Of course, they're failing while being perceived as being Whole Paycheck, so maybe they need a complete reboot. I don't shop there. A few times with those prices cured me of that.

ive always thought their Amazon Fresh was a premium line. i remember when it first started, it required a $300 membership. i think its different now.

 

[Kirk]

Not a fan of it. I am so tired of all these mini monopolys.

Agreed. Getting too big!

 

[Micca]

I buy plenty of non-food items from Amazon with 100 percent satisfaction. I've been in Whole Foods exactly once, didn't buy anything. What I do think is that the traditional grocery store model is a sitting duck for some sort of disruption. The concept of going to the store/putting items in cart/taking items out of cart to check out/putting items in bags and back in cart to get them to the car/loading items in the car/unpacking car at home...it just seems pretty clunky when we do so many other things with a single mouse click. I totally understand folks who want to choose their own meat & produce, but for most packaged goods I'm guessing a lot of folks buy pretty much the same stuff over & over. I usually enjoy grocery shopping but I'm retired and have a lot of time on my hands. My adult DD hates grocery shopping and can't get out of there fast enough. Pretty sure she'd love to get most things delivered.

 

[amberpi]

I buy plenty of non-food items from Amazon with 100 percent satisfaction. I've been in Whole Foods exactly once, didn't buy anything. What I do think is that the traditional grocery store model is a sitting duck for some sort of disruption. The concept of going to the store/putting items in cart/taking items out of cart to check out/putting items in bags and back in cart to get them to the car/loading items in the car/unpacking car at home...it just seems pretty clunky when we do so many other things with a single mouse click. I totally understand folks who want to choose their own meat & produce, but for most packaged goods I'm guessing a lot of folks buy pretty much the same stuff over & over. I usually enjoy grocery shopping but I'm retired and have a lot of time on my hands. My adult DD hates grocery shopping and can't get out of there fast enough. Pretty sure she'd love to get most things delivered.

The stuff I get from Whole Foods is perfect for a delivery service - rice, veggie chips, cashew butter, etc. I buy produce, booze/wine, meat, most cheese/butter within walking distance - heck if I drank beer I could walk to a place that refills growlers (right word?). The closest proper grocery store is outside of my little enclave, requires driving and is called the "murder Kroger" so everyone in my neighborhood goes to Whole Foods or Trader Joe's (admittedly, we'd be their target demographic). Not having to DRIVE to acquire those will be pretty great. Nashville is pretty weird about how 2 neighborhoods can be lovely - and then the next one is literally the ghetto, so that's a pretty specific thing. The more I think about this, the more stoked I am. If you're owning stock in Amazon, just know that there are plenty of people (like me) who are going to see value in this possible offering. Now - if they could just get their drones to put my groceries away

 

[bcla]

The stuff I get from Whole Foods is perfect for a delivery service - rice, veggie chips, cashew butter, etc. I buy produce, booze/wine, meat, most cheese/butter within walking distance - heck if I drank beer I could walk to a place that refills growlers (right word?). The closest proper grocery store is outside of my little enclave, requires driving and is called the "murder Kroger" so everyone in my neighborhood goes to Whole Foods or Trader Joe's (admittedly, we'd be their target demographic). Not having to DRIVE to acquire those will be pretty great. Nashville is pretty weird about how 2 neighborhoods can be lovely - and then the next one is literally the ghetto, so that's a pretty specific thing. The more I think about this, the more stoked I am. If you're owning stock in Amazon, just know that there are plenty of people (like me) who are going to see value in this possible offering. Now - if they could just get their drones to put my groceries away

I don't think that's all that unusual to have a really "nice" neighborhood blocks away from the "hood". That's pretty common in San Francisco. The Tenderloin is a seedy part of San Francisco with homeless, drug dealing, prostitution, etc. Just three blocks away is Nob Hill, which is one of more affluent parts of the city. And a couple of blocks towards downtown are the 4/5 star hotels around Union Square.

The strange thing about the place (Berkeley Bowl) I mentioned is that it's a combination of a local supermarket and a destination market for specialty items. People travel from miles to get there, and there's probably a Whole Foods closer to home. It's also in one of the less affluent areas in town, near the border with Oakland. They get a mix that includes people living from paycheck to paycheck, who otherwise would have been shopping at overpriced corner stores. It replaced a Safeway supermarket that suffered from low average purchases per customer. Safeway closed it down because it wasn't terribly profitable. The new market brought something to an area that was previously a food desert, and the amount of destination shoppers more than makes up for the low volume shoppers living in the neighborhood. The previous location was a block away, but it was more of a produce market than anything else. By taking over a larger space, they were able to provide a lot more items that would appeal to neighborhood shoppers.

 

[amberpi]

I don't think that's all that unusual to have a really "nice" neighborhood blocks away from the "hood". That's pretty common in San Francisco. The Tenderloin is a seedy part of San Francisco with homeless, drug dealing, prostitution, etc. Just three blocks away is Nob Hill, which is one of more affluent parts of the city. And a couple of blocks towards downtown are the 4/5 star hotels around Union Square.

The strange thing about the place (Berkeley Bowl) I mentioned is that it's a combination of a local supermarket and a destination market for specialty items. People travel from miles to get there, and there's probably a Whole Foods closer to home. It's also in one of the less affluent areas in town, near the border with Oakland. They get a mix that includes people living from paycheck to paycheck, who otherwise would have been shopping at overpriced corner stores. It replaced a Safeway supermarket that suffered from low average purchases per customer. Safeway closed it down because it wasn't terribly profitable. The new market brought something to an area that was previously a food desert, and the amount of destination shoppers more than makes up for the low volume shoppers living in the neighborhood. The previous location was a block away, but it was more of a produce market than anything else. By taking over a larger space, they were able to provide a lot more items that would appeal to neighborhood shoppers.

I've lived other places and seen what you're describing, Nashville just takes it a step further We have a road, and not even a big one, that divides a nice neighborhood and subsidized housing - and not the nice kind.

The place you're describing sounds AMAZING! I meant to comment earlier, that'd be the kind of place I'd love! We just don't have such - its local butchers, fair trade coffee...and murder Krogers close to me. My folks have Aldi's in the town I grew up in and I think it's a weird neat place. I just think there is a ton of opportunity for Amazon here and I'm hoping to use it myself to make life a little easier.

ETA: if you want some small batch shine and a prostitute though, its super convenient If you have enough shine, that may seem like a good idea.

 

[bcla]

I've lived other places and seen what you're describing, Nashville just takes it a step further We have a road, and not even a big one, that divides a nice neighborhood and subsidized housing - and not the nice kind.

The place you're describing sounds AMAZING! I meant to comment earlier, that'd be the kind of place I'd love! We just don't have such - its local butchers, fair trade coffee...and murder Krogers close to me. My folks have Aldi's in the town I grew up in and I think it's a weird neat place. I just think there is a ton of opportunity for Amazon here and I'm hoping to use it myself to make life a little easier.

ETA: if you want some small batch shine and a prostitute though, its super convenient If you have enough shine, that may seem like a good idea.

In San Francisco there's a public housing project right in the middle of an affluent neighborhood. It's really kind of bizarre. I think it was built years before housing prices went up, and before the cost of land would have been prohibitive.

As for Berkeley Bowl, here are a few descriptions of the two locations. There's even TripAdvisor reviews. The thing that separates it from other high end grocery and produce markets is their philosophy on pricing. There are higher end supermarket chains, but none of them have the same value pricing model.

http://weirdcombinations.com/2010/04/berkeley-bowl-west/
https://www.yelp.com/biz/berkeley-bowl-berkeley
https://www.yelp.com/biz/berkeley-bowl-west-berkeley-2
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaur...eviews-Berkeley_Bowl-Berkeley_California.html

This one compares Berkeley Bowl to Whole Foods:

http://www.berkeleyside.com/2010/04/27/the-berkeley-bowl-effect/

San Francisco has a similar place called Rainbow Grocery. It's actually a co-op.

 

[amberpi]

In San Francisco there's a public housing project right in the middle of an affluent neighborhood. It's really kind of bizarre. I think it was built years before housing prices went up, and before the cost of land would have been prohibitive.

As for Berkeley Bowl, here are a few descriptions of the two locations. There's even TripAdvisor reviews. The thing that separates it from other high end grocery and produce markets is their philosophy on pricing. There are higher end supermarket chains, but none of them have the same value pricing model.

San Francisco has a similar place called Rainbow Grocery. It's actually a co-op.

That neighborhood sounds like my area. A neighborhood over though, I'm not fancy pants.

That store looks amazing - especially the fish. The fish markets in SF make me SO jealous. I've been offered interesting jobs there but the weather will forever keep me away, when I think of the food landscape, I start to reconsider.

All my friends love a co-op. Mine is better, its free My mom's farm is already producing tons of vegetables and even more are coming. I've been cutting up fresh basil for preserving while Dising today.

 

[RedAngie]

Never bought from amazon, there are several Whole Foods very close by, never shopped at one. So for me I really don't care.

Similar. I went to a Whole Foods about 10 years ago, only bought a few things, and never went back.

While I do order occasionally from Amazon, it's usually books or other items that generally aren't sold in supermarkets.

I actually ENJOY going to the supermarket and hope that option always exists.

 

[longboard55]

my wife gets 2 packages a day from amazon, always one item not very expensive, I ordered a box of staples from amazon, $4.76 with no charge for shipping. At some point the amazon experiment fails, they have trained the us to buy one thing at a time with free delivery. You can not sell a dozen eggs offer free delivery and make money. Just sayin. Enjoy it while you can