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There must be some incredible data being mined by Amazon via Whole Foods. At the Whole Foods in Palo Alto, there seems to be an elaborate pricing experiment in

There must be some incredible data being mined by Amazon via Whole Foods. At the Whole Foods in Palo Alto, there seems to be an elaborate pricing experiment in the ice cream department. Entire brands (Talenti) are dropped in price 70%. Other times, particular flavors are reduced that much, sometimes less so. For Talenti, the entire brand is sold out. Some of the on-sale flavors go quickly or are also sold out while others are completely ignored, despite the discount (namely anything from Three Twins, who's blurb on their ice cream and their shop at SFO make them sound like assholes). Maybe 25% of the options in that section are discounted, and the amount of discounts varies as well, with a number of different steps like (80%, 50%, 35%, 20%, 10% or similar). Nothing else in the shop is stratified like that. Beer and wine might have 2% of the options on sale. Ditto produce and meat. Most departments offer no discounts.

mjmahone17 9y ago
Alternatively: Amazon has decided certain brands won't be carried anymore. Therefore those brands are getting steep discounts to clear the stock and Wholefoods' legacy contracts quickly.
cosmie 9y ago
To your point on beer and wine: state liquor licensing boards control retail pricing structures pretty heavily. In Tennessee for example (the state I’m most familiar with), the price of beer can be set at whatever, but liquor can’t be sold below cost and wine can’t be sold below a 20% markup over cost. It makes discounting a bit tricky, to ensure you stay compliant. Especially if you already have competitive pricing.
- icantdrive55 9y ago
  I didn't know that about wine. It's not going to affect my wine buys. I only buy their $2.49 bottle. Amazon raised the price to $2.99 (it's a terrible wine. The better palates buy the pricey stuff. To me it's just medicine. So please don't buy it.) Now to Amazon lower prices: They systematically raised everything in the stores a few cents to a few dollars. Believe me, I know. I know their price of rice, butter, milk, bread, gluten fee this/that. Somedays I get dizzy looking at ingredients. Somedays I need to pop a Klonopin in the bathroom just to get out of there. I have a Grandmother who is hypnotized into shopping there. Every Sunday I take her there. I get pretty much the same stuff for her weekly. I have been shopping there for 10 plus years. "They raised priced? Here, here you troll. The boy genius lowered prices?" Yes--he told his managers use a few sales items as Lost Liters. There's about 10-20 sales items that are a good deal. Bananas come to mind. I can only eat a few bananas before they go bad, but you can freeze them. They are 29 cents a lb. At Costco you could feed a family of monkeys for $1.29. My point is Amazon, so far, has done nothing to reverse, "Whole Paycheck", at least so far. Probally more than you ever wanted to know about WF's prices? (Is it still better than dealing with angry help at Safeway--sadily yes. It's too bad Safeway managed to piss off every employee in the corporation, and fill those stores up with so much Signature salty crap.)

mjmahone17 9y ago

Alternatively: Amazon has decided certain brands won't be carried anymore. Therefore those brands are getting steep discounts to clear the stock and Wholefoods' legacy contracts quickly.

cosmie 9y ago

To your point on beer and wine: state liquor licensing boards control retail pricing structures pretty heavily. In Tennessee for example (the state I’m most familiar with), the price of beer can be set at whatever, but liquor can’t be sold below cost and wine can’t be sold below a 20% markup over cost. It makes discounting a bit tricky, to ensure you stay compliant. Especially if you already have competitive pricing.

icantdrive55 9y ago
I didn't know that about wine. It's not going to affect my wine buys. I only buy their $2.49 bottle. Amazon raised the price to $2.99 (it's a terrible wine. The better palates buy the pricey stuff. To me it's just medicine. So please don't buy it.) Now to Amazon lower prices: They systematically raised everything in the stores a few cents to a few dollars. Believe me, I know. I know their price of rice, butter, milk, bread, gluten fee this/that. Somedays I get dizzy looking at ingredients. Somedays I need to pop a Klonopin in the bathroom just to get out of there. I have a Grandmother who is hypnotized into shopping there. Every Sunday I take her there. I get pretty much the same stuff for her weekly. I have been shopping there for 10 plus years. "They raised priced? Here, here you troll. The boy genius lowered prices?" Yes--he told his managers use a few sales items as Lost Liters. There's about 10-20 sales items that are a good deal. Bananas come to mind. I can only eat a few bananas before they go bad, but you can freeze them. They are 29 cents a lb. At Costco you could feed a family of monkeys for $1.29. My point is Amazon, so far, has done nothing to reverse, "Whole Paycheck", at least so far. Probally more than you ever wanted to know about WF's prices? (Is it still better than dealing with angry help at Safeway--sadily yes. It's too bad Safeway managed to piss off every employee in the corporation, and fill those stores up with so much Signature salty crap.)