Amazon already dominates much of the IT service and support field. They got the Internet retail on lock. They also got delivery services. But now, Jeff Bezos wants the food/grocery industry, too. And he’ll probably get it. Because Amazon acquires Whole Foods: Is this too much?
That’s right. Amazon buys Whole Foods for $13.7 billion. That’s about $42 a share. Also, they expect to finish the deal by the end of 2017. Whole Foods is a nationwide grocery chain, specializing in selling local and organic foods. Furthermore, Whole Foods CEO John Mackey will keep his position. He also praises the deal. Mackey said this will help shareholders as well as bring high quality to customers. We’ll see.
However, despite their above average prices and customer support, stockholders urged Whole Foods to merge. Also, Whole Foods lags behind in online sales. Look at Wal-Mart’s online shopping record. Meanwhile, Amazon wants to push and add to it’s online food delivery service, like Amazon Fresh. So in their eyes, this match makes logical sense. Amazon shares went up because of the news. But it’s clear competitors don’t like this one bit. For example, Kroger stocks are falling over 10%. Costco drops over 5%. Even Walmart stock prices fall almost 5%. Maybe that’s what Amazon and Whole Foods want.
Okay, Amazon acquires Whole Foods makes a lot of sense for the rich owners, investors, and shareholders. But what about the rest of us? There is an age old saying. “Those who control the food control the power”. I’m afraid of where this is heading. Doesn’t Jeff Bezos and Amazon have enough control of our lives already? Do we really want to give him control of the food, too? And don’t Amazon and Walmart have enough of the online grocery market? It’s not a good sign that competitors stock prices drop because of this. Well, I’m thankful we still have competitors at all, with the way all these mergers are happening. Because if these mega conglomerate mergers keep up, I’m afraid our free enterprise system could be in danger. So Amazon acquires Whole Foods: Is this too much?