Amazon now delivering fresh groceries

Amazon.com is testing a pilot program in the Seattle area that delivers perishable groceries to consumers. The program, called Amazon Fresh, includes organic and non-organic fruits and vegetables, dairy products, ice cream, meat and seafood at “competitive everyday prices.”
Users select and pay for groceries on the site. They can then choose to pick up the items themselves locally, or, with a minimum order size, have them delivered next day within a one hour time slot. Groceries will also be delivered to doorsteps pre-dawn in a temperature-controlled container.

A year ago Amazon began experimenting with sales of non-perishable food and household items, but did not deliver them directly and perishable goods were not available. With a dozen Amazon Fresh refrigerated trucks, the company for the first time is delivering products directly to the doors of customers instead of relying on a third-party service such as UPS or the US Postal Service.

Amazon Fresh bears resemblance to the ''90’s Webvan. Webvan, which had a spectacular IPO and quickly expanded to 26 cities, went bankrupt in 2001. Before closing down, Webvan had acquired competitor HomeGrocer. Coincidentally, Amazon was an investor in HomeGrocer.