Dive Brief:
- Amazon has started providing same-day grocery delivery service from four stores operated by Seattle-area supermarket chain Metropolitan Market, the online retailer announced in a Tuesday email.
- The e-commerce giant is also expanding its delivery partnership with East Coast grocery store operator Weis Markets.
- Amazon is stepping up its role as a third-party grocery delivery provider as it also aims to strengthen its Amazon Fresh chain.
Dive Insight:
Amazon’s tie-up with Metropolitan Market continues the company’s efforts to position itself as a delivery partner with established grocery chains in various parts of the U.S.
Under the arrangement, Amazon will deliver groceries in as little as two hours from Metropolitan Market’s locations in the Queen Anne and Crown Hill areas of Seattle as well as Sammamish and Tacoma, Washington. Customers who belong to Amazon’s Prime membership program will get free delivery on their first three orders of at least $10 from the grocer, which runs 10 stores.
“Collaborating with Amazon aligns with our ongoing commitment to serving our guests where they are, and providing them with the highest quality food and ingredients they have come to know and love from our stores,” Ron Megahan, CEO of Metropolitan Market, said in a statement.
Amazon also said Tuesday that it is now handling deliveries from six additional Weis Market locations in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York, building on an existing relationship between the companies. Last November, Weis began allowing shoppers to earn points through its loyalty program for orders they place using Amazon’s platform.
The company expects to offer delivery service from additional Metropolitan Market and Weis Markets locations at a later point, Christian Seitel, head of U.S. grocery partnerships for Amazon, said in the announcement.
In addition to Metropolitan Market and Weis Markets, Amazon provides e-commerce services to grocers including Arizona-based Cardenas Markets and California chain Bristol Farms, which like Metropolitan Market is a unit of Good Food Holdings. Amazon also works with Save Mart in California’s Central Valley and San Francisco Bay Area supermarket chain Lucky Supermarkets, both of which are owned by The Save Mart Companies.
In late August. Amazon added several locations to its fleet of Amazon Fresh supermarkets. The company runs about 50 stores under the banner, which debuted in September 2020.
