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Amazon has made its biggest acquisition ever: Whole Foods for $13.7 billion. That number includes Whole Foods' net debt:
The deal, expected to close in the second half of this year, gives the e-commerce giant — which has been experimenting with various physical store concepts to make itself a name as a food purveyor — an instant expanse of 460 high-end brick-and-mortar stores across the U.S., in Canada and in the U.K.
Whole Foods, which made its name retailing organic and fresh products, had been struggling recently amid stepped-up competition from Costco Wholesale, Trader Joe's and other grocers.
Shares of Whole Foods rose ahead of the acquisition while analysts speculated that other grocery retailers would snap up Whole Foods to keep it away from Amazon, or at least drive up the price.
Groceries are low margin and high cost businesses. This acquisition may be seen as part of a long-running war between Amazon and Walmart.
Will the shelves of Whole Paycheck be stocked by Amazonk's mighty robotic Prometheans? I think I'll shop at ALDI instead.
Previously: Walmart Plays Catch-Up With Amazon
Walmart Kills Amazon Prime-like Service, Expands Free Shipping
Amazon Shuts Down Diapers.com as Founder Runs Walmart's E-Commerce Operations
(Score: 3, Insightful) by takyon on Saturday June 17 2017, @01:26AM (1 child)
Maybe Amazon will introduce its "take items off the shelves and walk out of the store" concept into all Whole Foods locations. You have to have an Amazon account and an expensive smart phone. If you don't have either of those, you get gassed or poison darted at the entrance.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday June 17 2017, @05:22AM
NB! remember that poison, the dart and the blowpipe HAVE all got to be Vegan Certified Organic.
Next year's headline per Amazon's Master Plan: "Amazon buys ALDI". :)