Amazon To Start Delivering Food Items, Daily Groceries In The UK

Amazon is stepping up its game against supermarkets in the United Kingdom with the launch of Amazon Fresh, its online groceries shopping service, in London.  

The online service will offer more than 130,000 groceries to homes located in North and East London, which includes the delivery of thousands of fresh produce, dairy and bakery items that the company has not previously sold in the country, The Guardian reported.

The online retail giant has teamed up with supermarket chain Morrisons, plus food and drink producers including Coca-Cola, Kellogg's, Danone and Warburtons for the wide variety of items being offered. It has also announced that it will offer local produces from smaller shops and markets, such as small businesses in Borough Market.

This is the first time Amazon has stepped out of the United States for Amazon Fresh, which will be offered to those who signed up to an Amazon Prime subscription service. However, an additional of £6.99 monthly fee will be added to your account. Subscribers can get a month of deliveries on orders summing up to £40 or more.

Vice-President of Amazon Fresh, Ajay Kavan, said that the major factor to the success of the service would a mixture of low prices, wide selection of goods, and fast delivery. The service is offering one-hour delivery slots to 69 postcodes in the capital with same-day delivery service on orders placed before 1pm. Prices on selected items are intended to be slightly cheaper than at the major grocers.

Kavan said, "The bar in grocery retailing is exceptionally high. The supermarkets and grocers are among the very best retailers in the world. We will be very methodical and considered in how we roll this service out further in the UK," Sky News reported.

According to pocket-lint.com, customers will be able to receive a refund if they are unhappy with their produces' freshness. They will also receive a free substitute for any item they ordered that is not available on delivery.

Last September, Amazon started selling frozen items via its Prime Now one-hour delivery service, which is offered in major cities, including London and Manchester. The service was followed by the expansion of the Amazon Pantry service, which enables shoppers to fill a box of grocery items from a range of 4,000 household products, including from big brands such as Kellogg's, Ariel, Colgate and Kronenbourg. Fresh and frozen food is not sold via Pantry.