What is the Amazon Fresh Grocery Store?
Amazon recently announced the opening of its first Amazon Fresh grocery store in Woodland Hills, California.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Amazon Fresh grocery store launch.
What is Amazon Fresh?
Piloted in 2007, Amazon Fresh delivers groceries to customers’ doors and also provides pickup services from select retail locations. Amazon Fresh offers free grocery delivery to Prime members in select regions on Amazon Fresh orders that meet the local free delivery threshold (typically $35).
With Amazon Fresh, shoppers fill up their carts on Amazon, then select a 2-hour delivery window. A trained Amazon shopper will pick up and deliver the selected items. Amazon Fresh and other online grocery delivery services have been in higher demand than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many services, Amazon included, have begun offering contactless delivery during the pandemic.
Amazon also used its first-ever Amazon Fresh grocery store to serve local customers ordering groceries online in the Woodland Hills, California area.
What is the Amazon Fresh grocery store?
The Amazon Fresh grocery store is a new grocery store designed from the ground up to offer a seamless grocery shopping experience, whether customers are shopping in-store or online.
“While the Woodland Hills Amazon Fresh grocery store just opened, Amazon Fresh store associates offered online grocery delivery out of the store throughout the pandemic. “I’m so proud and humbled by our store associates and the work they’ve done—and continue to do—to support the community during this tough time,” says Jeff Helbling, Vice President of Amazon Fresh stores.
What products will be available at Amazon Fresh grocery stores?
Amazon Fresh grocery stores will offer shoppers a wide assortment of national brands, produce, meat, seafood, and prepared foods. The prepared foods, made daily in-store, will include bakery items, made-to-order pizzas, sandwiches, rotisserie chicken, and more.
Customers can also shop a wide assortment of conventional products, as well as organic products from the 365 by Whole Foods Market brand. Amazon acquired Whole Foods in 2017 and has no doubt leveraged the experience of running 500+ Whole Foods Market locations to plan for its Amazon Fresh grocery stores. Amazon Fresh grocery stores will also offer local brands, regional favorites, and Amazon-exclusive brands.
Amazon Fresh grocery store features
The Amazon Fresh grocery store offers same-day delivery and pickup, as well as Amazon.com package pickup and returns.
Just like Amazon.com shopping, the Amazon Fresh store will offer competitive prices. “For example, Fresh brand Natural Whole Chicken with no added hormones for 99 cents/lb, a 3 lb bag of onions for $1.69, and 10 count of Quaker Oatmeal (all flavors) for $2.50,” explains Helbling.
Customers will also earn 5% back at Amazon Fresh when they use their Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card or Amazon Prime Store Card at checkout.
To bring even more convenience to the Amazon Fresh grocery store shopping experience, Amazon launched the Amazon Dash Cart to help customers skip the checkout line.
“Customers simply place their bags in the cart, sign in using their Fresh QR code in the Amazon app, shop, and exit through the Dash Cart lane to automatically complete their payment. The cart uses a combination of computer vision algorithms and sensor fusion to identify items put in the cart.”
Last but not least, Amazon Fresh grocery stores allow shoppers to use Alexa and Alexa shopping lists to find items in the store more quickly. Customers can access their Alexa shopping lists via the Amazon app or the Amazon Dash cart. There will also be Amazon Echo devices located throughout the stores so that shoppers can ask Alexa for help.
In late August, Amazon sent invites to select customers in Woodland Hills, California to shop the store before it opens widely to the public. The store will open to the public in the coming weeks with COVID-19 safety measures in place. Keep an eye out for additional news on Amazon Fresh grocery stores, including potential opportunities for vendors.
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