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More Whole Foods locations get Prime Now Pickup

Amazon to offer grocery delivery service on Thanksgiving Day

Russell Redman

November 8, 2018

3 Min Read
Supermarket News logo in a gray background | Supermarket News

Amazon has rolled out Prime Now Pickup to Whole Foods Market stores in another eight metropolitan areas.

The companies said Wednesday that the click-and-collect service is now available at Whole Foods locations in Birmingham, Ala.; Colorado Springs, Colo.; Long Island, N.Y.; Milwaukee; Salt Lake City; San Antonio; Tacoma, Wash.; and Tulsa, Okla.

Launched in early August in Sacramento, Calif., Virginia Beach, Va., Prime Now curbside pickup is now offered in 22 markets. Late last month, the service launched at Whole Foods stores in Las Vegas, San Diego and Boise, Idaho, as well as in Jacksonville, Tampa and West Palm Beach, Fla.

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Grocery pickup in an hour is free for Amazon Prime members on orders of at least $35 but carries a $4.99 fee for orders to be ready in 30 minutes. Customers park in a designated pickup spot, and a Prime Now personal shopper puts the groceries into their car. Amazon noted that customers can have their orders ready upon arrival by using the Prime Now app to provide notification when on their way to the store.

Members can shop thousands of items for pickup at Whole Foods, including fresh and organic produce, bakery, dairy, meat, seafood, floral and daily essentials. Customers in Long Island, San Antonio and Tacoma also can order select alcohol online for store pickup.

“Pickup from Whole Foods Market is a perfect option for customers who want to grab healthy and organic groceries at their convenience, all without leaving their car,” Christina Minardi, executive vice president of operations at Austin, Texas-based Whole Foods, said in a statement. “Grocery delivery through Prime Now has been a hit with our customers, and we’re happy to expand the option of grocery pickup to even more Prime members across eight new cities.”

Prime Now delivery is now offered at Whole Foods Markets in 63 cities. The service, launched in February, most recently made its debut in Albuquerque, N.M.; Birmingham; Boise; Charleston, S.C.; Colorado Springs; Hartford and Stamford, Conn.; Kansas City, Mo.; Providence, R.I.; and Salt Lake City.

Yesterday, Seattle-based Amazon announced that Prime Now delivery and pickup via Whole Foods will be available on Thanksgiving Day until 2 p.m. Online orders can be delivered or picked up in less than an hour, and beer, wine and liquor can be purchased for delivery or pickup in select cities.

Last year, the most popular food items ordered by Prime members in the 24-hour lead-up to Thanksgiving included russet potatoes, Daisy sour cream, Organic Valley and Eggland’s Best eggs, yellow onions, Reddi Wip whipped cream, Martinelli's Gold Medal sparkling cider, blueberries, baby carrots and Libby's pumpkin, according to Amazon. The top 10 cities where Prime members used the one-hour delivery service leading up to the holiday were Los Angeles, Seattle, New York, Dallas, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Miami, Las Vegas, Austin and Sacramento.

Amazon has garnered a high level of customer satisfaction with its online grocery service, ahead of Instacart, Walmart and supermarkets and other food stores, according to the Retail Feedback Group’s (RFG) 2018 Online Grocery Shopper Study, released on Tuesday.

On a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the best, shoppers surveyed rated their satisfaction with Amazon’s grocery service at an average of 4.70, compared with 4.59 for Instacart, 4.54 for Walmart and 4.36 for supermarkets/food stores, RFG’s report said. Seventy-four percent of respondents rated Amazon’s service at the top score of 5, followed by 73% for Instacart, 65% for Walmart and 51% for supermarkets/food stores.

Customers gave Amazon’s e-grocery service high marks in such areas as checkout, website/app performance, delivery and store pickup, selection, and the quality and freshness of the items ordered.

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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