Why Amazon wants to open new Whole Foods stores

American media sources claim Amazon is planning to open new outlets of supermarket chain Whole Foods. The stores would also serve as a distribution and pickup point for subscription service Prime Now.

Faster roll-out for Prime

In the United States, Amazon is in the middle of a tough competition war with big players such as Ahold Delhaize, Kroger, Target and above all Walmart, which is quickly catching up in the online department. The Wall Street Journal writes that this is why Amazon intends to open more and larger Whole Foods stores. The e-commerce giant acquired the sustainable supermarket chain in 2017. Whole Foods now has some 475 physical stores but hardly any further expansion has occurred for a few years.

All that is now about to change: with more physical stores, Amazon will be able to roll out its Prime Now service faster in areas where it was not available before. Prime subscribers can have their online orders delivered at home within two hours, or pick them up at a neighbourhood store within 30 minutes. Amazon is now targeting Western states such as Idaho, Utah and Wyoming. At 4000 square meters, the new stores are supposed to be somewhat bigger than the existing ones. This is due to their additional functions as pickup and distribution points.