Consumers may soon have a new way to grocery shop with Amazon, and they wont have to worry about their perishable food items going bad before they are delivered.
Amazon may soon be moving even further into the grocery market with a new “click and collect” option for online grocery shoppers.
According to a new report from USA TODAY, Amazon may soon be adding drive-up grocery hubs where consumers can retrieve the groceries that they had ordered online, thereby eliminating the need for Amazon to deliver perishable grocery items. The new service would be added as a complement to the company’s current grocery services, which include Amazon Fresh and Prime Now.
USA TODAY reported that there are three possible locations for the new grocery hubs, with one in San Carlos and on in Sunnyvale, Calif, along with one in Seattle. However, a spokesperson for Amazon declined to comment on this new service; therefore, the possible new service has not been confirmed, and the details remain a mystery.
That being said, USA TODAY reported that one project developer in California has proposed an 11,600 square-foot internet retail grocery store on a commercial property site, while Silicon Valley Business Journal has cited planning and loan documents that have revealed Amazon as the retailer behind this location, along with a similar location in San Carlos, Calif.
In addition to the two California locations in question, USA TODAY reported that Seattle recently approved a permit for an unnamed company to construct a mixed-use structure in the Ballard neighborhood. This site is assumed to be for Amazon’s third grocery pickup site.
USA TODAY reported that planning documents have revealed that, when using this new grocery service, customers would schedule a pickup time that can be between 15-minutes and two-hours after the order is placed. Customers would then drive or walk to the designated pickup area to retrieve their purchases.
