PCC Natural Markets Adds Amazon Prime Now Delivery
PCC Natural Markets (PCC), the largest consumer-owned natural food retailer in the United States, has grown its delivery options through a partnership with Prime Now, Amazon’s two-hour delivery service. PCC is the first in the Seattle area to team with Prime Now to deliver local, organic, sustainably sourced food.
“We regularly get requests from shoppers for a PCC in their neighborhood,” noted Cate Hardy, CEO of PCC, which, like Amazon, is based in Seattle. “By partnering with Prime Now, we’re able to give more Seattle shoppers access to the highest-quality produce, meat, seafood and pantry items. We also offer many of our entrees, soups and salads made-from-scratch daily in our deli – all delivered right to their doorstep.”
PCC first began offering home delivery through Instacart last September. According to the grocer, sales through the San Francisco-based online delivery service doubled in the first six months, with an estimated two-thirds of delivery sales to date from new-to-PCC shoppers or bigger basket sizes from existing ones.
In a phone interview with Progressive Grocer, Hardy pointed out that Amazon Prime Now serviced more than 60 ZIP codes in the Seattle market, ranging “pretty extensively” into the northern, southern and eastern suburbs, including areas not currently covered by Instacart. Hardy emphasized, however, that PCC’s partnership with Instacart, which she affirmed had received “a great response from our customers,” was still in effect. The Prime Now partnership complements the Instacart service, according to Hardy, offering, in addition to greater geographical reach, free delivery to shoppers who already are Amazon Prime members, as well as the opportunity for them to get groceries delivered in an hour for a flat fee without having to create an Instacart account.
Acknowledging that PCC was one of the first grocers to put in place this type of “dual model” of grocery delivery by offering two distinct services, Hardy said she saw “no reason why they couldn’t co-exist. We’re putting [the decision] in the shoppers’ hands.”
Prime Now is offered exclusively to Amazon Prime members in select cities. Purchases are delivered within two hours at no charge. A fee of $7.99 guarantees one-hour delivery.
As far as either physical or digital growth beyond its burgeoning home Seattle market, Hardy told PG that such a move was not currently “on our radar.”
In addition to PCC's 10 existing locations, a new store in Bothell, Wash., is set to open this summer.