What Does Amazon-Whole Foods Price Mean for Your Grocery Bill
By now, you’ve heard the news: Amazon plans to buy Whole Foods for $ 13.7 billion. The jokes were joking , the dust settled, and now the big question remains: what will this mean for your products?
It’s too early to tell what Amazon is officially planning to do with Whole Foods, but rumors are circulating and experts have a few predictions . First, it is likely that Whole Foods will indeed bring down its notoriously high prices. Believe it or not, Whole Foods is already testing price reductions on certain foods due to competition from Walmart and Trader Joe’s. This can be good news, even if you’re not shopping at Whole Foods. Analysts say other grocery stores are likely to cut their prices and improve their loyalty programs to keep up with shopping. CNBC reported :
“This deal will change the way you buy food,” Mickey Chadha, Moody’s vice president and senior credit manager in charge of Whole Foods, told CNBC’s Squawk Box Monday morning. He expects Amazon to pressure grocery stores to cut prices.
They add that the merger is likely to be even better news for Amazon Prime and Fresh customers, who usually get the best Amazon deals. Moneyish reported :
Coincidentally, Whole Foods plans to roll out its own loyalty program later this year and members are likely to receive direct discounts on select products. “They will be very active in integrating Whole Foods with Amazon, and I’m sure there will be Prime rewards for shopping at Whole Foods,” says Barnett.
The downside is that a merger can mean downsizing. Amazon is already testing stores that allow shoppers to leave without the hassle. It only seems logical that they will take the move mainstream with their newly acquired grocery chain, and according to some reports, they are already making plans to downsize.
Again, it’s too early to tell exactly what we can expect, but given that Amazon has been trying to get into the grocery game for a while now, it’s likely there are some big changes in the works.