What do you think of the Amazon purchase of Whole Foods

[JaxDad]

Will the new Amazon cashier robots have tattoos and piercings?

 

[GaryDis]

I can't claim to know enough about the supermarket business to predict the impact. But I have no fondness for a company that in the past has made the news for overworking and underpaying their warehouse employees, cuts royalties to independent authors while flexing their market muscle, and have put so many brick and mortar shops out of business. I continue with Audible only because I've used them long before Amazon bought them and there are few comparable options, though I'm starting to pay attention to Scribl. And I order from Amazon when they're the only vendor I can find with the product I want and a decent reputation.

I don't understand how people can order groceries consistently for delivery. Won't frozen food melt in summer heat before you can get home to unpack? Milk will spoil. And in winter, won't breads, yogurt, maybe cans be ruined from freezing, bottles break, etc? Do they just arrange all deliveries in the evening?

 

[longboard55]

I can't claim to know enough about the supermarket business to predict the impact. But I have no fondness for a company that in the past has made the news for overworking and underpaying their warehouse employees, cuts royalties to independent authors while flexing their market muscle, and have put so many brick and mortar shops out of business. I continue with Audible only because I've used them long before Amazon bought them and there are few comparable options, though I'm starting to pay attention to Scribl. And I order from Amazon when they're the only vendor I can find with the product I want and a decent reputation.

I don't understand how people can order groceries consistently for delivery. Won't frozen food melt in summer heat before you can get home to unpack? Milk will spoil. And in winter, won't breads, yogurt, maybe cans be ruined from freezing, bottles break, etc? Do they just arrange all deliveries in the evening?

Amazon drops the package on your doorstep, hits the bell and runs, no that will not work with groceries. The problem with Amazon is the do not make money so they have to keep growing revenue or all their stock holders will bail. Grocery stores have very high revenue. They just do not make any money. Its a perfect match

 

[Westcoastwild]

I can't claim to know enough about the supermarket business to predict the impact. But I have no fondness for a company that in the past has made the news for overworking and underpaying their warehouse employees, cuts royalties to independent authors while flexing their market muscle, and have put so many brick and mortar shops out of business. I continue with Audible only because I've used them long before Amazon bought them and there are few comparable options, though I'm starting to pay attention to Scribl. And I order from Amazon when they're the only vendor I can find with the product I want and a decent reputation.

I don't understand how people can order groceries consistently for delivery. Won't frozen food melt in summer heat before you can get home to unpack? Milk will spoil. And in winter, won't breads, yogurt, maybe cans be ruined from freezing, bottles break, etc? Do they just arrange all deliveries in the evening?

Frozen food: I occasionally get blue apron, and the food comes in cooler insulation with block ice material. Meat on the ice, fruits and veg indirect above it. It would definitely be safe for about 6 hours even in 80-90 degree weather- it's a more efficient set up than the Coleman cooler I take on camping trips.

I haven't tested it in extreme cold, but generally think it would still take several hours to permeate the cooler material for the stuff to freeze. None of the stuff is in glass, and a lot of stuff I buy anymore at the grocery store isn't in glass.

So if the packaging was like that, none of the issues you're talking about would happen. Additionally, shows up at the same time every time because of the UPS/fedex delivery delivery schedule, and I get notified when it's delivered. I'm assuming that anyone who orders their food can get to it within 6 hours.

I don't really think people would order milk in general, though. That's something every corner store has.

 

[Imzadi]

I am very picky about my meat so I would never let anyone else choose it. Heck, most times when my husband goes shopping he sends me photos of the pork chops before he picks some LOL

I didn't ask him to do that but I don't mind one bit that he does.

I think you just came up with a great idea! They could do it the way Ticketmaster sells theatre & concert tickets. They show, say 6 picture choices of what's currently available of a certain cut of meat one wants and then gives 6 minutes to lock in & buy that purchase immediately. Otherwise, those pics move to the next person queued up online for them to choose. Since one person only sees 6 pics at a time, many people can be buying different selections at the same time instead of one person seeing the dozens of choices on hand and everyone else locked out until that person chooses.

I think people generally tend to forget that many others have specific dietary issues- if Amazon could offer the same gluten free or vegan selection Whole Foods has, they'd probably become really popular for that reason alone.

Amazon, Target & Walmart do have some gluten free, vegan & organic foods available online. (I was doing a search for some gluten free crackers a few weeks ago at Walmart online.) Amazon has other, well known, name brand organic/gluten free companies, not Whole Foods. Jeff Bezos probably acquired Whole Foods partly to sell the WF 360 brand at Amazon.As you mentioned, that brand sells a lot of different kinds of products.

(I decided against getting crackers delivered as I wasn't sure what would arrive would be a box of crushed cracker crumbs. Walmart also sells bags of chips online. NOT chancing having those delivered either. )

 

[mousehockey37]

Maybe Amazon will deliver the Whole Foods groceries via drone in a few years.

FAA isn't letting that happen. Amazon has been testing the drones in India and Canada.

 

[Imzadi]

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.

Yes, imagine needing to do all those steps when one has a health problem. I have a life-long condition that causes chronic fatigue. When it was at it's worst, improperly diagnosed & treated, I could barely make it to the grocery store, let alone all the non-food shopping I needed to do. Online shopping for non-food items became a god-send.

I don't have a car. Everything has to be lugged on the subway or down the street. (Even when I was fully healthy, I had to be aware of how many packages I'd have to lug around and shop accordingly.) Now, that I'm being properly treated, I probably still only have 70% of energy on any given day. So I have to be very conscious of how I use my energy. Being able to have some food staples delivered via mouse clicks is a wonderful convenience. But, I have a concern that a different health problem can wipe out my energy again and food shopping online becomes a necessity.

When we are healthy, we take so much for granted in what we are able to do. But, aren't baby boomers still one of the largest demographics of our population? As we all get creaky and older

I can see that as aging baby boomers need to shop online, it culturally changes how we shop in brick & mortar stores and what we consider a "normal" way of doing things now.

Even younger SAHMs can benefit from doing most of their grocery shopping online. They can't leave home, or has a fussy kid who can't last long in the store, and can't afford or don't want to pay a babysitter. Gone are the days of leaving a sleeping child in the car while running in for milk & a few groceries. A few mouse clicks and the majority of items are delivered. Then all they have to do is run in (with child) for the produce & meats, which doesn't take nearly as long. In & out before the kid starts crying.

 

[MillauFr]

Will the new Amazon cashier robots have tattoos and piercings?

The new Amazon grocery store that is under development in Seattle won't have cashiers. They somehow know what you are leaving with and charge accordingly.

 

[Westcoastwild]

Even younger SAHMs can benefit from doing most of their grocery shopping online. They can't leave home, or has a fussy kid who can't last long in the store, and can't afford or don't want to pay a babysitter. Gone are the days of leaving a sleeping child in the car while running in for milk & a few groceries. A few mouse clicks and the majority of items are delivered. Then all they have to do is run in (with child) for the produce & meats, which doesn't take nearly as long. In & out before the kid starts crying.

I was thinking especially of this group. I went to college in a town that mostly existed because of farming and the land grant university. I worked in a supermarket there. Driving into town and back is at least an hour or two round trip for those moms and a supermarket run makes a long day longer when you've got really young kids. I think this group, as well as retired folks, would be the ideal target market if they could adapt coupons for online and in store use. There are certainly older people I know who aren't comfortable with technology (my mother) but still manage ordering stuff from Amazon. And then there are many, many more older people who have everything online. Banks and bill paying and almost everything except groceries. So why not groceries? I personally like shopping but I don't think many people do. There was a lady behind me in the pharmacy line today who clearly was about to have a cow because the pharmacist was taking forever to look up my insurance. That's another target market for online grocery shopping- if only so the rest of us don't have to deal with her.

 

[Westcoastwild]

The new Amazon grocery store that is under development in Seattle won't have cashiers. They somehow know what you are leaving with and charge accordingly.

There's one like that in Asia and the YouTube video is fascinating to watch. We have the technology to make checkers completely redundant, it's just that most stores don't want to spend the money to implement it.

Oops, meant to ask: where is the Seattle one and when is it projected to open? Grocery store technology brings out the geek in me and I want to go rubberneck.

 

[Imzadi]

I don't understand how people can order groceries consistently for delivery. Won't frozen food melt in summer heat before you can get home to unpack? Milk will spoil. And in winter, won't breads, yogurt, maybe cans be ruined from freezing, bottles break, etc? Do they just arrange all deliveries in the evening?

Yes, this is my biggest concern too. When I'm at the local grocery stores, I see several bags of groceries lined up, off to the side waiting to be delivered. (This actually isn't a new service or concept. The original 1974 Death Wish, movie that launched Charles Bronson on his vigilante missions started because his wife & daughter bought groceries that were later delivered to their home. The robbers/killers heard the address being given and followed the women home as they knew they would be expecting a knock on the door. But, I digress.) When I see those bags off to the side, I wonder how LONG have they been sitting there and how long will it be before they get to a fridge or freezer again?

There are two Trader Joe's that can deliver to me. They state they can deliver within 2-4 hours. That is way too long for refrigerated & frozen stuff, which is all I buy there. Heck, while standing in the long lines that literally wind through the stores here, I wonder if I'm going to make it home before all the ice crystals start melting? I would love to just send in my order as there are several items I always re-buy. (Love their pot stickers & tamales. ) But, I'm not chancing stuff melting before it gets to me.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Frozen food: I occasionally get blue apron, and the food comes in cooler insulation with block ice material. Meat on the ice, fruits and veg indirect above it. It would definitely be safe for about 6 hours even in 80-90 degree weather- it's a more efficient set up than the Coleman cooler I take on camping trips.

I haven't tested it in extreme cold, but generally think it would still take several hours to permeate the cooler material for the stuff to freeze. None of the stuff is in glass, and a lot of stuff I buy anymore at the grocery store isn't in glass.

So if the packaging was like that, none of the issues you're talking about would happen. Additionally, shows up at the same time every time because of the UPS/fedex delivery delivery schedule, and I get notified when it's delivered. I'm assuming that anyone who orders their food can get to it within 6 hours.

I don't really think people would order milk in general, though. That's something every corner store has.

How did you like Blue Apron?

 

[GaryDis]

Here's the Amazon Go Seattle video.

It's kind of creepy, reminding me of Ira Levin's dystopian novel, This Perfect Day. I wonder what happens if you put something back in the wrong place. Also, it seems like it would encourage overshopping, since you're not going to see the bill until after you walk out, and then only if you look.

Still, at least it allows you to browse the aisles, get ideas, be reminded of things you forgot to put on your list, etc. I don't think I could get an online order to be complete the first time, because I depend so much on walking the aisles to trigger what I want or need.

 

[bcla]

I remember the early attempts at online groceries. PeaPod is still in business. They originally partnered with existing supermarket chains like a Safeway and Kroger, so they didn't end up spending money on warehouses. Webvan failed spectacularly. They followed the mantra of developing a customer base before profitability. They were leasing warehouse space like crazy and advertising for name recognition, kind of how Pets.com went down. In the end they expanding to markets trying to increase market share, and were losing money on each transaction before shutting down. The most embarrassing thing I remember about them was that they had paid to place their name on every cup holder at the then Pacific Bell Park in San Francisco. Once they shut down it seemed a bit embarrassing to have the name of a failed company throughout the stadium. On top that, there was a massive Enron logo on the scoreboard.

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/matie...t-at-ball-yard-42-000-cup-holders-3314941.php

 

[Westcoastwild]

How did you like Blue Apron?

Hm. Trying to figure out the best way to explain:

I've found that the three main things that most people complain about- namely price, packaging and portions- don't bother me. The price is really not more than I would spend per serving. The meat and fish are really high quality and it would cost me the same to buy similar quality ingredients where I live if not more, because you can't usually buy a pork roast for just two people. Blue apron specially packages the right sized portions. People complain about tiny vinegars or or whatever (basically, blue apron sends you premeasured stuff for just that meal) but again that doesn't bother me because there is no way I will use a full sized container of something I buy for one recipe before it goes bad, so it isn't actually a better deal for me to buy that at a supermarket. People complain about the excessive packaging, but unless you shop only case meats and veggies and bulk foods- which the average American doesn't- realistically- grocery supermarkets just involve a lot of packaging and even more that you don't see- that "naked" produce comes in giant plastic crates or cardboard.

But having said that, my reaction is mixed.

Pros:

Everything arrives fine, and I have really enjoyed several of the recipes. The two person meals are generous portions, and we've frequently stretched it to feed three people. You don't need fancy tools- just basic knife skills and a good cutting board and sauté pan and maybe a sauce pan and strainer. They do a good job of breaking it down in the instructions and they also send some really cool veggies that I would not have tried otherwise. So I do learn stuff. It's generally tasty and healthy and doesn't involve a lot of dairy. Even the knicknacks- like tomato paste- is frequently high quality imported stuff, and that means a lot to me because I read labels to avoid preservatives and corn syrup.

But the cons are...

1) there are sometimes stuff I just flat out don't like- I don't care how "gourmet" the spices are, I'm still not going to eat a sloppy joe. I seriously cannot believe that was a recipe option. And the model is budget driven, so if you pick one of the alternates, you likely lose access to the one recipe you were
really looking forward too.

2) it can get repetitive. I've had it for a year and a half now, I think. A lot of their seasoning instructions are "add salt and pepper" and they really like vinegar. The first is probably a problem if you're a rookie cook, which is their target market. I am not. I know roughly when to add salt and when it really isn't necessary- or even detrimental. I like the convenience and I like encountering stuff that I wouldn't normally try (black garlic burgers, anyone?) but this isn't exotic fare to me and it's not the educational experience that people hype it as. The second is not a huge issue except the recipes/flavors occasionally become too much of a pattern for me, so I take long breaks (which they make really easy to do. You can skip any delivery via the app, no charge. And they have great customer service over the phone). But anyway- it's one dish meals usually, like stir fry over rice. And sometimes they are complete meals, and sometimes I agree with the people who complain that it doesn't involve enough veggie sides.

Another complaint I've seen commonly in the reviews is that they market it as a 30 minute meal prep. I'd say it is only if you have near professional knife skills. It doesn't bother me, and frankly I think the people who complain about this aspect were probably hoping for more of a prepared food aspect which would alienate me from blue apron. The draw, at least for me, is cooking mostly from scratch and to not have to shop and think about recipes. But I do think it's a bit deceptive on BA's fault for setting up that expectation. I haven't cooked one meal in less than 30 minutes from set up to plating because I am not fast with a knife. Prep takes me 20, cooking takes 10-20.


So...hopefully that long post gave someone some useful information

 

[Imzadi]

I was thinking especially of this group. I went to college in a town that mostly existed because of farming and the land grant university. I worked in a supermarket there.

You actually brought up another demographic that can benefit. Parents who want to send their college kids health(ier) care packages of foods. They can have it automatically sent rather than shopping & packaging it up & then sending it.

There are certainly older people I know who aren't comfortable with technology (my mother) but still manage ordering stuff from Amazon.

Walmart has made it easy to reorder. Just bring up my account and it brings up an itemized list of past purchases. Then there is a button under each item asking if I want to reorder it, allowing me to choose how many I want and it puts it in my cart. If I have something in my cart that I want to take out, I can "Save it for later," instead of just deleting it and having to look for it again if I hadn't bookmarked the page. I just scroll down & add it back on.

If someone walks the technologically challenged through it once, making a list of items to get & saving it to a Wish List or Reorder list, it would be easy then for the techno challenged to order.

Then people could still shop at Walmart in their pajamas and never leave home.

 

[GaryDis]

You actually brought up another demographic that can benefit. Parents who want to send their college kids health(ier) care packages of foods. They can have it automatically sent rather than shopping & packaging it up & then sending it.

You're missing the most important feature of care packages. They're supposed to have Mom's homemade cookies and cakes inside.

 

[Westcoastwild]

You actually brought up another demographic that can benefit. Parents who want to send their college kids health(ier) care packages of foods. They can have it automatically sent rather than shopping & packaging it up & then sending it.




Walmart has made it easy to reorder. Just bring up my account and it brings up an itemized list of past purchases. Then there is a button under each item asking if I want to reorder it, allowing me to choose how many I want and it puts it in my cart. If I have something in my cart that I want to take out, I can "Save it for later," instead of just deleting it and having to look for it again if I hadn't bookmarked the page. I just scroll down & add it back on.

If someone walks the technologically challenged through it once, making a list of items to get & saving it to a Wish List or Reorder list, it would be easy then for the techno challenged to order.

Then people could still shop at Walmart in their pajamas and never leave home.

Lol...well, that food would probably go to waste knowing most college friends I knew. And if my mother had sent me care packages it would have contained cheesy goodness I cannot eat as I have yet to convince her that dairy intolerance is a real thing

But it would be great money maker for the stores, that's for sure.

 

[Imzadi]

You're missing the most important feature of care packages. They're supposed to have Mom's homemade cookies and cakes inside.

Lol...well, that food would probably go to waste knowing most college friends I knew. And if my mother had sent me care packages it would have contained cheesy goodness I cannot eat as I have yet to convince her that dairy intolerance is a real thing

But it would be great money maker for the stores, that's for sure.

But the kids could then trade the care package items, the way younger kids do with their packed lunches in school cafeterias. "I'll trade you your 6-pack of Ramen noodles for my 12-pack of tuna my mom sent me."

 

[Westcoastwild]

But the kids could then trade the care package items, the way younger kids do with their packed lunches in school cafeterias. "I'll trade you your 6-pack of Ramen noodles for my 12-pack of tuna my mom sent me."

I was thinking they could return the food at the brick and mortar for beer money but suppose that could work too lol