Jeff Bezos acquired Whole Foods because he wants to be a bigger part of your life; so he's taking over your kitchen
Jeff Bezos acquired Whole Foods because he wants to be a bigger part of your life — so he’s taking over your kitchen.
Amazon + Whole Foods = ?
“ "The answer to this question begins with a number." — Jeff Bezos
Stop thinking of it as just groceries. It’s stuff we eat and drink, the last known legal addiction.
11 Segments in The Portfolio
With growth in AWS and fulfillment services, Amazon has to beef up its retail sector with a bold move. Bezos tried partnering as a way around lack of insight into merchandising and vendor relations. It didn’t work and he pulled back both with toys and electronics as a result of weak partner behavior in important categories. He feels food is strategic, and now he owns a key to the sector that will never go away or become obsolete.
12th and largest acquisition
We know Bezos is making history here, although we aren’t sure exactly how. Amazon was founded on July 5, 1994, in Seattle, WA. Bezos has been waiting all this time, developed the expertise that has made Amazon arguably one of the most innovative companies in history, in order to make his largest acquisition — a grocer. The reason may not be clear, but you can be sure it’s no accident.
To Bezos, this isn’t just an acquisition, it’s organic.
Jeff Cunningham is an advocate for enlightened global leadership, which he calls the most valuable natural resource in the world. He is a Professor at ASU’s Thunderbird School of Global Management and was the former publisher of Forbes Magazine, startup founder, digital content CEO, and ran an internet venture capital fund.
The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of Thunderbird School of Global Management or Arizona State University as a whole.
[This article has been reproduced with permission from Knowledge Network, the online thought leadership platform for Thunderbird School of Global Management https://thunderbird.asu.edu/knowledge-network/]