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Amazon to buy Whole Foods for $13.7 billion cash

conpfreak

Member
I don't think Walmart or traditional grocers like Kroger will be hugely impacted by this. They still have way more stores than Whole Foods has, and they don't service the same customers anyway. Amazon would ruin the Whole Foods brand if it tries to change it into a pureplay competitor for Kroger, as that would mean replacing many niche expensive products to generic cheap items.

Amazon is going after a niche, high income, high margin market with Whole Foods. If they truly wanted to take down normal grocers, they could have purchased Kroger.

I think Whole Foods is a bit more in line with Amazon has already built with their grocery service, with a wide selection of high quality produce, pre-packaged foods, and ingredients. Meat prices are still a bit ridiculous there, but younger people tend to not mind paying a bit more for quality ingredients and food. Hence, avacado toast. The future has Americans spending more on groceries, not less. Lower priced chains will response to the move to automation in their own way, providing similar conveniences to compete.
 

Stinkles

Clothed, sober, cooperative
Shame because I was hoping whole foods would lose some of its customers to Amazon fresh so that I could go to the store without encountering humanity's most self absorbed shoppers and car parkers.

Almost every aisle is filled with parents using the floor as a kindergarten for kids who have never felt the sting of even a raised voice. Or limitless seas of Audi q7s parked diagonally across three compact spaces.
 

inner-G

Banned
Shame because I was hoping whole foods would lose some of its customers to Amazon fresh so that I could go to the store without encountering humanity's most self absorbed shoppers and car parkers.

Almost every aisle is filled with parents using the floor as a kindergarten for kids who have never felt the sting of even a raised voice. Or limitless seas of Audi q7s parked diagonally across three compact spaces.

Really? Ours is always just seemingly full of hipsters (Tacoma WA)

The families here go to Safeway, Fred Meyer, Albertson's, etc.
 
Hot stock takes:

Amazon: +3.3% to $995.98
Wal-Mart: -6.36% to 74.18
Target: -10.28% to $49.76
Costco: -7.69% to $13.85
Kroger: -13.44% to $21.26
Dollar General: -5.16% to $68.59
SuperValu: -16.22% to $3.15
Sprouts Market: -12% to $19.73
Smart & Final Stores: -14.09% to $9.60
Weis Markets: -7.25% to $47.23
Ingles Markets: -7.71% to $32.30

lol
Damn, why is Costco's stock so low to begin with?
 

Plinko

Wildcard berths that can't beat teams without a winning record should have homefield advantage
Unless they lower prices, this will help nothing. Whole Foods was in trouble before because of the high prices.
 
Almost every aisle is filled with parents using the floor as a kindergarten for kids who have never felt the sting of even a raised voice. Or limitless seas of Audi q7s parked diagonally across three compact spaces.

Weird, the one here on the eastside is pretty chill and nice. Never had a problem parking and people move through the store and the checkout lines without fuss.

edit: It helps that I think they stopped selling cars other than Model S's, Leafs, and Outbacks to eastside residents.
 
Shame because I was hoping whole foods would lose some of its customers to Amazon fresh so that I could go to the store without encountering humanity's most self absorbed shoppers and car parkers.

When it comes to self entitles fucks who can't park it can be a rich yuppie at whole foods with their Audi, trailer trash pickups covered in maga stickers at walmart, or the old people who think its fine to park their 99 cadillac with 15k miles on the sidewalk at stopnshop.

You will never escape assholes unless you never leave the house.
 
I guess I'm going to have to find a new grocery store. There's no way in hell I'm going to support Amazon's takeover of yet another American retail segment.
 

Ripenen

Member
"This sour cherry IPA is delicious. 5 stars

I received a six pack of sour cherry IPA from the distributor in exchange for this unbiased review."
 
Why buy them? I thought their worth was going down, so might as well wait til they are much cheaper.

Because Amazon wants to launch their own chain of supermarket, with Amazon services integrated within, with quick checkouts i.e. walk in, pick up items, walk out, and it'll charge you accordingly. They have a trial running at Seattle, and it seems like it's easier to convert an existing chain with existing customers rather than starting fresh. They could be rolling it within a year or two, and want to test the market.

Whole Foods is one of the few chains that is not tainted, and small enough for quick purchase with premium.

https://www.amazon.com/b?node=16008589011
 
Just lower the price on the Breakfast bar!

It's on my way and I like some of it but chickpeas and sausage gravy shouldn't cost me $13
 

stolin

Member
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also please note-this gets Amazon into the prepared food sale and delivery biz, which was WF's biggest innovation to the grocery sector, has nutso margins, scales to delivery models, and has totally nailed the current trends and tastes of American upscale consumers.

also what happens to instacart? Talk about tough beats if you're there waiting for your ipo/equity payday.
 

Chaplain

Member
Seems the blockchain is coming at us at an unrepresented rate.

How the blockchain will radically transform the economy | Bettina Warburg

Say hello to the decentralized economy -- the blockchain is about to change everything. In this lucid explainer of the complex (and confusing) technology, Bettina Warburg describes how the blockchain will eliminate the need for centralized institutions like banks or governments to facilitate trade, evolving age-old models of commerce and finance into something far more interesting: a distributed, transparent, autonomous system for exchanging value.
 

McLovin

Member
I wonder if they will change their pricing. Whole foods prices are insane, thats why when I need "organic" stuff I go to trader joes mostly.
Whats whole food? Fresher food?
Its a supermarket chain that offers lots of healthier options, think Trader Joes but way bigger. The only thing that sucks about them is that their prices are crazy. Like $12 for a jar of almond butter.
 

Xero

Member
Really? Ours is always just seemingly full of hipsters (Tacoma WA)

The families here go to Safeway, Fred Meyer, Albertson's, etc.
Can confirm. Though it doesnt help its sandwiched between trader joes, harbor greens, and tacoma boys either.
 
Welp, Amazon just gained access to all those S.N.A.P. recipients. WF's packaged and prepared food prices are roflcopter, but their fresh produce are reasonable (last time I checked).
 

iavi

Member
Very smart buy. Whole foods needed help, and amazon needed a brick and mortar presence to roll Go out to
 

ColdPizza

Banned
Shame because I was hoping whole foods would lose some of its customers to Amazon fresh so that I could go to the store without encountering humanity's most self absorbed shoppers and car parkers.

Almost every aisle is filled with parents using the floor as a kindergarten for kids who have never felt the sting of even a raised voice. Or limitless seas of Audi q7s parked diagonally across three compact spaces.

I am Jack's complete lack of surprise.
 
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