This segment from the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five podcast, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, examines Amazon's launch of a new private label grocery brand with over 1,000 items priced under $5.

Chris and Anne debate whether this move represents a strategic reset or reveals how lost Amazon's grocery strategy has become. Is the "Amazon Grocery" brand name compelling enough to attract budget-conscious shoppers, or should they have leveraged the existing 365 brand from Whole Foods? Tune in for critical analysis on Amazon's latest attempt to crack the grocery code.

For the full episode head here!

Amazon private label strategy, budget grocery brands, Amazon Fresh vs Whole Foods, grocery retail competition, value shopping

#amazon #amazongrocery #privatelabel #groceryretail #budgetshopping #amazonfresh #retailstrategy #valuebrand #groceryshopping #retailnews

Amazon has launched a price conscious grocery brand with Most products under $5.

According to CNBC.

The brand is called Amazon Grocery and includes more than 1,000 items ranging from dairy, fresh produce, meat and seafood to snacks and baking essentials, the company said in a press release.

Amazon said that the new offering unites its Happy Belly and Amazon Fresh brands all under one label.

This is not the first time that Amazon has experimented with budget friendly grocery brands.

It also launched a similar, similar offering last September called Amazon Saver that was also quote, focused on value.

End quote.

Chris, what do you make of Amazon's latest private label push?

Honestly, nothing.

You know, to me this is, this is really a nothing story.

At the end of the day it's a sound bite.

The fact that Amazon has to go back to the well in a private brand for value items after being in business for almost 30 years, when you think about it and that, that says to me, and I'm paraphrasing here, wow, how lost is Amazon's grocery strategy right now?

I mean that is, that is what comes to mind for me, I guess, I guess, you know, if I step back, don't I try to look glass half full?

You know, it's somewhat a continuation of the theme of resetting the table.

I think that's what we've seen from Jason Beechle, the new head of Amazon's grocery strategy here, over the last probably six months, probably not even that long really.

It's probably been like three or four months, I don't remember exactly.

But that's what this is.

It's a reset of the table.

But this move with the enticing brand name, which I actually kind of chuckled when you read it of Amazon Grocery, that that's the private label's brand name.

Yeah.

That doesn't set my hair on fire.

Not, not in one way, shape or form.

And I don't think it does for the average shopper either.

But I don't know.

What do you think?

Have you tried any of those?

Like I haven't tried any of the Amazon, the Happy Belly products.

I have not been an Amazon grocery shopper enough to, to know like quality wise or you know, like that's the, that's again like the number one thing that I question is like what was wrong with the previous lines that they have to reconfigure this and very overt.

You have to make the very overt call out that it's like associated with grocery.

That's what you're saying.

Yeah, well I, yeah, I guess I'm just Curious, like what was, what was not working about the previous one?

And I still think that they're going to have to work harder to make this a recognizable game.

Like it or brand.

I wonder, like with Jason Beo, like they had the, the 365 brand in some of the Amazon Fresh stores.

Like why wouldn't you just like pull that in to be the brand that already has a brand reputation?

It's associated with good quality.

Like something to me seems off that they wouldn't just like try to, I don't know, bring these things together a little bit more versus starting something all over again.

Especially because, you know, yes, your shoppers are going to be trained to look for an off brand or a private label brand for value, which we know is happening at a multitude of other retailers.

But I, I just, I'm curious, like it's not going to work the same way as it does in hardware and electronics and even clothing with like Amazon Essentials.

I think you have to go with a brand that means something and that has quality.

And starting from scratch doesn't seem like the right move.

Yeah, no, and I can answer your one question.

I mean the reason you can't go365 is cause that's Whole Foods brands and Whole Foods private label brands are positioned up market and this is deliberately a soundbite to get the under $5 in there.

So that's, that's why, that's why you can't go that way.

But I guess like how is this different than what came before?

Which I think is what I was saying too essentially, which is like what, what's the real news here?

That you just created a new name for it and you're trying to get people to re.

Re.

Engage with something that you've probably been doing for quite a long time, you know, for the most part.

Yeah.

It just seems weird that they're like the whole message from Whole Foods at Grocery Shop was like, we're going down market because we want to try to offer value.

We're going to push private label.

Like they're two companies.

Like they're, they're merging in some areas but not in others.

And it's just like it, it's confusing to me as a consumer and as somebody who does this for a living.

Like I'm just not clear 100% right?

Like, yeah, you're right.

Like if you said to me like, hey, we're taking 365 down market and we're putting a lot of under $5 products in whole foods.

Sure.

That's at least.

That's one strategy I can get behind.

It makes or not maybe get behind, but I think it makes sense.

It's like, more clear.

But when you're doing this, it's just like you're half pregnant on everything, and it's just like you're meandering about and you don't know which way your arms are flailing.

Whatever.

Whatever.

Anachronism.

Anachronism is not the right word, but whatever, you know, analogy I want to draw here, right?