This summer, a user of Amazon Spain took a picture upon entering the online store which was then circulated on Twitter. In the picture, there was a bottle of ketchup among the products being sold online. Soon, there were theories circulating and they all had the same train of thought: if there was a bottle of ketchup on Amazon, Amazon was testing this type of product and therefore the company would soon be offering them; Amazon Spain was going to open an online supermarket. Shortly after, specialized media confirmed that, indeed, the company hoped to open an online supermarket soon.
Their plans are now a reality. Amazon has just opened its online supermarket in Spain. Anyone who enters Amazon's web will find a banner allusive to the online supermarket as well as the new section in the pop-up menu. The supermarket is still in its beta phase, as they clearly state when one enters it. "You can find food, drinks and cleaning products. Fresh, frozen, refrigerated products, and products with a short expiration date are not available," they state. A quick glance confirms that consumers can get products like milk, coffee, liqueurs or cookies, but not yogurt, fruit, meat or vegetables. The supermarket is therefore still incomplete (though the website indicates that they are working to add new products and features).
Amazon Prime customers will receive the products in the following 24 hours without paying additional shipping fees and those who are in Madrid will receive the delivery on the same day of purchase. Therefore, unlike other online supermarket initiatives that are starting, the service will not be limited to the community of Madrid. Many products fall into the Plus Products category, so the consumer has to make a minimum purchase of 19 Euro (in products within that category) to receive the order. Therefore, one could argue that the supermarket has a minimum expenditure of 19 Euro.
The arrival of Amazon into the supermarket sector is not simply the entrance of an e-commerce giant into a new category and the launch of a new search for the firm. Amazon's online supermarket is news because the opening of that division may have an impact on the rest of the competitors and can act as a wake up call for the online supermarket market.
Is there a market for online supermarkets?
The first question people are asking themselves is if there really is a market for online supermarkets in Spain right now. Online supermarkets and home deliveries are the two main areas in which the e-commerce war will be fought in the immediate future. In recent months, big companies, from Google to Amazon, have been tuning their positions in these two areas in the United States, launching different services and giving customers more options to buy food products online and to receive the online purchased products in less time. The US is the market that sets the standard in electronic commerce and that indicates what the companies' next steps will be.
Even though the question of added value in future e-commerce is clear, and it's easy to see where the market is headed in the United States, things were not as clear in Spain. It's time for the giants to sharpen their claws.
Source: puromarketing.com