Want some Coke with your chia seeds? That’s exactly what Amazon is hoping to deliver with its new store-within-a-store concept at the Whole Foods Market in Plymouth Meeting, Penn., which gives shoppers access to national brands and household essentials alongside Whole Foods’ standard selection of organic and natural goods.
To enable this expanded selection, Amazon constructed a 10,000-square-foot automated microfulfillment center within the store’s existing back-of-house area. The microfulfillment center, which is powered by Fulfil’s grocery robotics platform, houses 12,000+ items from both Whole Foods Market and Amazon, allowing customers to order Whole Foods Market’s full assortment of fresh organic produce, dairy, meat and private brand items along with Amazon best-sellers in complementary categories such as household essentials, personal care, snacks, beverages, frozen items and more. Orders are prepared within minutes, whether customers shop online or via QR codes while in the store.
Amazon Wants to Make Grocery Shopping Simpler
The new concept, first announced in October 2024, is designed to make grocery shopping easier, turning Amazon’s flagship brick-and-mortar banner into a one-stop shop for grocery needs.
“Our ambition is simple: We want to make grocery shopping easier, faster and more affordable,” said Sam Heyworth, Amazon’s VP of Consumables in an interview with Retail TouchPoints earlier this year. “That might sound basic, but if you think about it, grocery shopping has become increasingly complicated over the past couple decades. The average consumer now visits four to five different retailers for groceries every month. There are more products competing for a place in your basket, more brands at more price points and more stores with overlapping selection.”
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Automated Facility at Whole Foods Uses Robots to Fulfill Orders
At the Plymouth Meeting Whole Foods, shoppers will now find QR codes throughout the store. When scanned, the Amazon app will be opened to a custom mobile storefront. From there, shoppers have access to thousands of additional products not found on Whole Foods’ shelves, things like Pepperidge Farm Goldfish Cheddar Crackers, Tide Laundry Detergent Pods, Johnson Baby Shampoo and Swiffer Refills.
Customers add the items they want to their Whole Foods Market shopping cart in the Amazon app. When ready, often in less than 10 minutes, customers will receive a text notification to collect their Amazon items at the Amazon Pickup & Returns Counter after finishing up their Whole Foods Market shopping.
Additionally, local customers will have access to this expanded selection when shopping the Whole Foods Market online store in the Amazon app, or on Amazon.com on a mobile device. Online shoppers can build one complete cart with everything they need for pickup or delivery.
The Fulfil-powered microfulfillment center at Plymouth Meeting manages both Whole Foods Market inventory and the extended Amazon selection from a single automated facility that uses autonomous ShopBots to sort, retrieve and stage products across all temperature zones. Orders are prepared within minutes before handoff to an employee who then finalizes it for customer delivery or pickup.
Pickup of orders remains the same: customers can choose curbside service with loading assistance or head inside the store to pick up their order. Grocery pickup is free for all customers on orders of any size. For Amazon Prime members, delivery is available for a $9.95 fee. Prime members also have the option to subscribe to Amazon’s grocery delivery subscription for $9.99 per month, which provides unlimited delivery on orders over $25 from Whole Foods Market, Amazon Fresh and other local grocery and specialty retailers on Amazon.com.
“At Whole Foods Market, we’ve always taken pride in offering a wide selection of natural and organic products, but we understand our customers appreciate the convenience of one-stop shopping,” said Jason Buechel, VP of Amazon Worldwide Grocery Stores and CEO of Whole Foods Market in a statement. “We’re making grocery shopping more convenient for customers by thoughtfully blending our grocery offerings and leveraging new fulfillment capabilities in creative ways. This new concept store experience allows customers to get everything on their shopping list in one convenient stop or one online order, combining quality with convenience while still delivering the exceptional shopping experience customers expect.”
