5 Eth New lab | Defit - mail ww.|@ www - (396 9 www _ Cont | Con heducation.com/#/epub/sn_4e83#epubcfi(%2F6%2F518%5Bdata-uuid-6cbb846975c54607846712d1e04cb3ad%5D!" omlE YouTube S Maps 9 News M Gmail Amazon.com, Inc.: Driving Disruptive Change in the U.S. Grocery Market Syeda Maseeha Qumer ICFAI Business School, Hyderabad Debapratim Purkayastha ICFAI Business School, Hyderabad On June 16. 2017. Seattle-based e commerce giant Amazon com, Inc. acquired Whole Foods Market. Inc.. one of the leading natural and organic foods supermarket chains in the United States. in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $13.7 billion. According to analysts, the deal touted to be Amazon's biggest acquisition to date, marked a turning point in the company's strategic efforts to crack the $800 billion U.S. grocery market. The deal also marked Amazon's big entry into the brick-and mortar retail space. The shares of big box retailers such as Wal Mart Stores, Inc. ' Target Corporation. Costco Wholesale Corporation, and The Kroger Co tanked with investors worrying about the far-reaching implications of the deal. "By purchasing Whole Foods, Amazon is set to disrupt the $800-billion grocery market in the same way it upended the publishing and consumer electronics industries. Now Amazon is right where it wants to be: everywhere. It has surpassed its original goal of being the 'everything store' and is fast on its way to becoming the 'everything everywhere store," said Sean Kervin practice director, customer experience, at Clear Peak. a management & analytics consulting firm. Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, realized that the e commerce giant could not win the grocery game with its pure online format. He saw brick- and-mortar stores playing a key role and hence acquired Whole Foods. In addition, by early 2018 Amazon also rolled out a high-tech convenience store format sans cashiers or check-out lines called Amazon Gin and AmazonFresh Store Pickup Services. According to some analysts, while grocery was a huge opportunity for Amazon. operating in this new business might pose some new challenges including intense competition. razor thin margins, delivery of perishables, and bringing the convenience of digital shopping to the grocery business." Some analysts felt that Bezos was taking a risk by making a major investment in an unsteady operation like Whole Foods, which could potentially be a drag on the e-tailer. They wondered-Can Amazon eventually change the way customers buy groceries? Can it manage brick- and-mortar well and redefine convenience? Can Amazon disrupt the grocery industry and the broader retail sector in a major way? ICMR O
