LAS VEGAS — Weis Markets was initially skeptical when Amazon came to it with a plan to fulfill delivery orders for the chain. But the grocer’s decision to accept the proposal has turned out to benefit the East Coast supermarket chain on several fronts, the company’s chief information officer said.
The relationship with Amazon has helped Weis improve its in-store operations, gain more insight into its e-commerce business and reach shoppers in areas beyond the reach of its brick-and-mortar stores, Greg Zeh, senior vice president and CIO of Weis Markets, said during a Monday panel session at Groceryshop.
“When Amazon approached us about becoming a grocery partner, they kind of gave us an idea [of] what they thought that sales volume might be, and we kind of looked at them … sideways and said, ‘We’re not sure if that makes sense or not,’” Zeh said.
Weis is currently working with Amazon to service orders from 23 sites that represent 75% of the grocer’s footprint. Amazon can handle deliveries to customers living within a 52-minute radius of Weis’ stores, Zeh said.
Weis has been able to tap Amazon’s e-commerce expertise to bring “some very good discipline to the organization” and help Weis’ team sharpen its ability to manage online orders, Zeh said. In an example of that, Weis workers have used metrics provided by Amazon to become more adept at picking products ordered by online shoppers, Zeh said.
Weis is currently working with Amazon to service orders from 23 sites that represent 75% of the grocer’s footprint. Amazon can handle deliveries to customers living within a 52-minute radius of Weis’ stores, Zeh said.
Zeh noted that third-party delivery providers account for about two-thirds of its e-commerce sales volume, with Amazon handling about a quarter of that business. Weis also works with e-commerce companies including Instacart, DoorDash, Uber Eats and Shipt.
Weis, which is based in Pennsylvania and runs about 200 stores in seven states, has also been able to add shoppers in markets that were beyond its reach before it joined forces with Amazon, giving it an opportunity to add customers in more metropolitan areas to its footprint, Zeh said. That could help Weis build its e-commerce volume to the point that it might consider investing in micro-fulfillment equipment, he added.
Weis is also working with Amazon to drive foot traffic in its supermarkets. The grocers already hosts Amazon lockers in stores and is in talks with Amazon about accepting returns for Amazon in its stores, Zeh said.
“We’re really trying to identify how best we can make good investments in innovation [and] in our digital capabilities to service our customers in the most financially positive way we can,” said Zeh.
Amazon, meanwhile, is growing the list of grocers it handles delivery orders for. In addition to Weis, Amazon has also partnered with a range of supermarket chains including Metropolitan Market, Save Mart and Lucky’s.
