Amazon confirms it will open a grocery store not named Whole Foods

When The Wall Street Journal reported in March that Amazon.com planned to open dozens of grocery stores in cities around the U.S., including Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C., the e-tail giant remained mum on the subject. That has changed, however, with a new report confirmed by Amazon that it will open a grocery store in the Woodland Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles next year.

CNET, the first to break the news, discovered four job postings for the location that billed it as “Amazon’s first grocery store.” The posting suggests that the store will operate under a banner other than Whole Foods. The store, Amazon confirmed, will not make use of the self-checkout technology used in its Go convenience store locations.

Amazon, as its recent announcement of free two-hour home delivery for Prime members shopping at Whole Foods exemplifies, is intent on gaining a greater share of the U.S. grocery market. Doing so will help drive its top line performance as consumers tend to shop more frequently and locally for groceries.

While speculation has centered around Amazon offering more of a mainstream supermarket to compete with the likes of Kroger, Safeway and other chains, management has not confirmed what type of grocery store it intends to operate. CNET reports that the new store will be located in a 35,000-square-foot space that was previously home to Toys “R” Us.

“When it comes to grocery shopping, we know customers love choice, and this new store offers another grocery option that’s distinct from Whole Foods Market, which continues to grow and remain the leader in quality natural and organic food,” an Amazon spokesperson told CNET.

• Amazon will launch new grocery store as alternative to Whole Foods – CNET
• Amazon pushes further into grocery business with new Los Angeles store – The Washington Post
• Amazon says it’ll roll out a new grocery store format next year – Engadget
• Amazon will be opening a new grocery store, and it’s not Whole Foods – USA Today
• Amazon to Launch New Grocery-Store Business – The Wall Street Journal
• Will free deliveries for Prime members make Amazon the driving force in online grocery? – RetailWire
• What will Amazon do with a conventional grocery banner? – RetailWire