If you don’t know, now you know; Amazon bought Whole Foods in June for $13.7 billion. MEEP!
As a result, Amazon’s chief executive Jeff Bezos announced a major move to cut Whole Foods prices in order to compete in the grocery industry. The upscale grocery store has since reduced its prices of organic avocados, baby kale and rotisserie chickens (This is exciting stuff people!!!).
However, in order to compete with grocery heavyweights such as Wal-Mart and Kroger, Whole Foods is going to need to mark down a lot more of their items because lowering the price of rotisserie chickens won’t cut it in the long run. Amazon is trying to move beyond and change Whole Foods’ exclusive reputation to make the chain more approachable for a variety of customers.
The deal also happened in under three months which shows us 1.) Just how fast Amazon is willing to work and 2.) How aggressive they are becoming on price.
According to the New York Times, Wal-Mart’s shares and Kroger’s also fell sharply when the deal between Amazon and Whole Foods was announced back in June. Amazon has an additional plan to turn its Prime membership program into a Whole Foods rewards program, which would provide customers with additional savings. Who doesn’t love extra savings?!
In a statement published by the New York Times, Amazon’s Jeffrey Wilke said that lowering prices would not compromise the quality of products at Whole Foods, which is the brand’s main selling point. We’re still getting the quality, just paying less.
Amazon’s goal was always to have more people shop online and now with this new Whole Foods deal, they are hoping to promote online grocery shopping as well.
Even though Amazon is promising many savings, the upscale, high-quality, al naturale grocer is still on the pricey side. So if you know what’s best for you, bring $20 max.
Overall, the process will take some time, but prices on more items are expected to drop. Whether you are into the healthy living lifestyle or not, Amazon’s Whole Foods purchase and subsequent price cuts are big news.