Slashdot Mirror
Amazon Plans Cuts to Shed Whole Foods' Pricey Image (bloomberg.com)
When Amazon completes its acquisition of Whole Foods Market, Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos will try to keep the grocer's reputation for premium fresh foods while cutting prices to shed its "Whole Paycheck" image. From a report: Amazon expects to reduce headcount and change inventory to lower prices and make Whole Foods competitive with Wal-Mart Stores and other big-box retailers, according to a person with knowledge of the company's grocery plans. That included potentially using technology to eliminate cashiers. Amazon, known for its competitive prices, is trying to attract more low- and middle-income shoppers with its grocery push. The Seattle-based company already offers discounted Amazon Prime memberships for people receiving government assistance and is part of a pilot program to deliver groceries to food-stamp recipients.
I would venture that a big percentage of WF clientele shop there *because* of its high-price reputation. There are studies showing that people feel like they're getting a better quality product when they pay more for something, and that is almost certainly a big part of why people shop at WF. I suspect that trying to compete with Walmart is going to destroy the chain.
"smug" people really arent any better than "trash"
just because you have money doesnt make you decent (as your post proves)
have you seen my sig? there are many others like it but none that are the same
just like on amazon.com, amazon should now allow local sellers to come and sell at Whole Foods stores! this may lead to competitive pricing and benefit whole food's reputation & business, farmers and consumers alike.
There's unfortunately little you can do. No matter where you go, the trash is shopping there.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
They want to turn Whole Foods into Wegmans?
I'm... actually okay with that.
Carry on.
I expect the first thing Amazon will change is the back-end distribution system. This is something Amazon knows better than pretty much anyone else, especially for non-perishables, which is probably more than half the store.
The article is click bait. As stated in the article, Amazon has not confirmed ANY of the assertions made in the article.
You do realize Whole Foods started in Texas
Austin Texas. A small bubble of something close to sanity surrounded by the rest of the lunacy that is Texas. Austin isn't much like the rest of the state. They call it weird but it's only really weird if you compare it to the rest of Texas. For people like me who visit Austin regularly but don't live in Texas, it isn't weird at all.
You could be right, but maybe Amazon is playing the long game, hoping to kill brick-and-mortar by the time its retail division needs to start showing profits (and raising prices).
When you spend 8 hours bagging other people's groceries you can get an employee discount.
When you spend 3 minutes bagging your own groceries you can get the enjoyment of faster check-out.
Yeh, this is really sad - WholeFoods for all that it is pricy as hell also sells a bunch of really good quality things that you can't easily get elsewhere. Turning it into yet another Safeway is a real shame.
I agree, but Amazon is a logistics company masquerading as a retail operations; similar to Walmart in terms of focus although not quite as cutthroat from what I've seen. If Amazon can maintain quality while reducing supply chain costs and expanding the customer base to get greater economies of scale tehy could turn Whole Foods into a serious competitor.
I'm a consultant - I convert gibberish into cash-flow.
If Amazon can maintain quality while reducing supply chain costs and expanding the customer base to get greater economies of scale tehy could turn Whole Foods into a serious competitor.
If it was a privately held company with a, "Quality is Job #1" slogan they actually believe in, that could happen.
In this case, however - where this was an investment opportunity/buyout by a large investor - I wouldn't hold your breath. Modern, large-scale business theory has a relatively new corollary they believe in: "Good Enough" trumps "Best" to most consumers. In several years, when Amazon's profits growth matures (and it always does), and stockholders start looking for new ways to keep stock prices going up (they always do), quality will be the first thing to go after they fire any remaining, expendable human workers.
I also question the usefulness of a store that doesn't sell essentials like asprin. I can get decent quality steak at Publix, and I can get asprin there too. I might be able to get a better steak from Whole Foods but I suspect I probably wouldn't taste the difference, and after viewing the receipt, I'd have a headache and no asprin to fix it.
Now, sure, I can go to two supermarkets. I can also not, and use the extra half hour to an hour it would take to drive to the next one, park, go in, find what I'm looking for, go to the checkout, buy it, walk back to the car, and drive home, to read another chapter of a book, or watch TV.
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
They're vitamins- an almost entirely unregulated market offering a product that has no health benefits for the vast, vast majority of people. Its modern day snake oil to begin with. How the hell do you counterfeit what's already fake?
I still have more fans than freaks. WTF is wrong with you people?