Patrick Penfield
An announcement Friday by online retailer Amazon regarding its intended purchase of Whole Foods is a game changer for the grocery industry, according to an expert in supply chain management and practices.
, professor of supply chain practice in the , believes Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods is a win-win for both companies.
Pasadena, United States – November 15, 2014: Whole Food Market exterior. Whole Foods is an American foods supermarket chain specializing in natural and organic foods.
“The potential acquisition of Whole Foods by Amazon would be a game changer and will impact the entire grocery retail space,” he says. “Amazon’s web presence, economies of scale, technology, distribution and back office operations would give Whole Foods a competitive advantage over other supermarket operations. Amazon has been trying to develop its own online grocery business and this acquisition will accelerate that growth. I can see an omni-channel application being used where AmazonFresh could ship from Whole Food stores throughout the country.”
According to reports, Amazon will pay more than $13 billion for Whole Foods when the deal is finalized before the end of 2017.
