Amazon’s Omnichannel Grocery Strategy with Tomorrow’s Jordan Berke

Summary

Podcast Summary: Amazon’s Omnichannel Grocery Strategy with Tomorrow’s Jordan Berke

Podcast Information:

• Title: The CPG Guys
• Hosts: Sree Rajagopalan & Peter V.S. Bond
• Episode: Amazon’s Omnichannel Grocery Strategy with Tomorrow’s Jordan Berke
• Release Date: April 22, 2025
• Description: CPG & FMCG eCommerce industry leaders explore how brands and retailers engage with consumers across various channels.

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Introduction

In this insightful episode of The CPG Guys, hosts Sree Rajagopalan and Peter V.S. Bond delve into Amazon’s omnichannel grocery strategy with their special guest, Jordan Burke, founder and CEO of Tomorrow. Recorded live at Amazon Fresh Store Number One in Woodland Hills, California, the discussion provides an in-depth evaluation of Amazon’s foray into the physical grocery retail space and its implications for the broader market.

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Amazon Fresh Store Number One: Ground Zero for Omnichannel Initiatives

Sree Rajagopalan sets the stage by introducing Amazon Fresh Store Number One as the epicenter of Amazon’s physical retail initiatives.

Sree Rajagopalan [01:02]: “We're here live at the Amazon Fresh Store Number one, Woodland Hills, California, to evaluate the latest in-store grocery operations.”

Jordan Burke emphasizes the significance of this store as a testing ground for Amazon’s omnichannel strategy, aiming to deliver an "epic outcome for the consumer."

Jordan Burke [03:09]: “Amazon and Grocery is going to be an epic outcome for the consumer. We're here to see if it was epic for us when we shopped and how the convenience and experience measured up.”

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Comparative Analysis: Amazon Fresh vs. Walmart China and Other Retailers

Peter and Jordan compare Amazon’s grocery store with Walmart China’s advanced retail formats, highlighting areas where Amazon is progressing and where it lags.

Peter V.S. Bond [02:55]: “I think you and I and global grocers around the world are wondering, is Amazon going to be the next big competitor in this segment?”

Jordan contrasts Amazon’s offerings with Walmart China, noting that while pricing strategies are competitive, the overall merchandise differentiation is lacking.

Peter V.S. Bond [05:16]: “Amazon is trying to pay us to be here by investing in price, and that is noticeable. But the product itself isn’t different enough from other retailers like Ralph’s, Safeway, or Trader Joe’s.”

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Pricing Strategies and Sustainability Concerns

The discussion turns to Amazon’s aggressive pricing strategies, including substantial discounts and digital coupons, questioning their sustainability.

Peter V.S. Bond [05:23]: “Amazon is trying to pay us to be here by investing in price, and that is noticeable.”

Jordan notes the significant discounts offered, such as 30% off with certain credit cards, but raises concerns about the long-term viability of these pricing models.

Jordan Burke [05:47]: “How long is that sustainable? We saw plenty of other offers, but the sustainability of these discounts is questionable.”

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Technological Implementations: Self-Checkout and Alexa Kiosks

The hosts evaluate Amazon’s technological integrations within the store, including self-checkout systems and Alexa kiosks, assessing their effectiveness in enhancing customer experience.

Peter V.S. Bond [06:43]: “The just walk out vision intended to remove friction, but currently, it just creates a self-scan experience where you still have to pay and scan everything.”

Jordan compares Amazon’s technology to alternatives like Instacart’s Capercard, finding Amazon’s approach less user-friendly.

Jordan Burke [07:38]: “Capercart is intending to be more just walk out with cameras and scales. Amazon’s cart requires lining up UPC codes with a camera, which is cumbersome.”

Despite these challenges, the digital coupon experience receives praise for its customization based on purchasing behavior.

Peter V.S. Bond [08:33]: “Amazon's digital coupon experience may even be best in class.”

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Retail Media Strategy: Maximizing In-Store Digital Inventory

A significant portion of the conversation focuses on Amazon’s retail media strategy, leveraging in-store digital screens to enhance advertising opportunities.

Jordan Burke [09:39]: “Amazon has 77 cents to every dollar in the retail media network universe. Utilizing in-store screens contextualized to the aisle is a winning formula.”

Peter acknowledges the potential but points out the current limitations due to low store traffic.

Peter V.S. Bond [10:15]: “There's unique exposure, especially in categories like poultry, but the overall traffic is still low, limiting inventory's advertising potential.”

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Grading Amazon’s Grocery Experience: Assortment, Value, and Convenience

The hosts rate Amazon’s grocery store performance across three critical dimensions: assortment, value, and convenience.

1. Assortment

   • Peter: “B minus. The merchandise assortment isn’t compelling enough to entice customers away from established retailers.”
   • Jordan: Agrees, citing limited unique offerings like samosas.

2. Value

   • Peter: “B minus. Despite attractive pricing, the lack of differentiated products undermines the overall value proposition.”
   • Jordan: Highlights the strength of customized digital coupons enhancing perceived value.

3. Convenience

   • Peter: “B to B plus. While the digital coupons are seamless, the checkout process introduces new friction points.”
   • Jordan: “A minus initially, downgraded to B plus due to issues with the self-checkout system.”

Notable Quote:

Peter V.S. Bond [12:43]: “If I'm looking for savings and I don't need a differentiated assortment, then it comes down to convenience. Can I get in and out quickly?”

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Stock and Inventory Management Challenges

The episode addresses significant challenges in inventory management, particularly the high incidence of out-of-stock items, which negatively impacts customer experience.

Jordan Burke [16:51]: “In about 20% of shelving here at Amazon, out-of-stock items create a real painful experience for consumers.”

Peter shares a compelling anecdote about a legendary Walmart store manager using physical demonstrations to emphasize the severity of out-of-stock issues.

Peter V.S. Bond [17:07]: “He'd see out of stocks and if he could fit himself into that space, that was a serious problem. That's a retail crime.”

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Future Outlook: Same-Day Delivery vs. In-Store Innovations

Looking ahead, the hosts discuss Amazon’s strategic focus on same-day and faster delivery services as a more impactful growth driver compared to its physical store innovations.

Jordan Burke [14:11]: “Amazon is definitely going to continue to win the race because their same day or faster delivery is probably having a bigger impact on their growth.”

Peter highlights Amazon’s expanding same-day delivery coverage, which is set to significantly bolster their grocery share globally.

Peter V.S. Bond [15:53]: “Amazon now has same day or faster delivery in 140 US cities, a 50% increase in coverage from last year, and it's expanding internationally.”

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Final Grading and Conclusion

After a comprehensive evaluation, the hosts conclude with an overall grade for Amazon’s physical grocery experience.

Peter V.S. Bond [18:23]: “Amazon's physical grocery experience, this one particularly, is still a C to me.”

Jordan expresses a mix of disappointment and hope, acknowledging Amazon’s potential for improvement under new leadership.

Jordan Burke [18:31]: “Whole Foods merchandising has improved, and with Jason leading Amazon Grocery from Whole Foods, there's potential for inspiring changes.”

The episode concludes with a commitment to revisit Amazon Fresh Store Number One in February 2026 to assess progress and changes.

Jordan Burke [20:16]: “We have a whole year to plan so we're not missing February 2026. It's been a pleasure, man. It's been a pleasure.”

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Key Takeaways

• Assortment Needs Enhancement: Amazon Fresh lacks compelling product differentiation compared to established retailers, limiting its ability to attract loyal customers.

• Pricing Strategies Are Attractive but Unsustainable: While aggressive discounts and customized digital coupons offer immediate value, their long-term sustainability remains questionable.

• Technology Integration Requires Improvement: Current self-checkout and Alexa kiosk implementations introduce friction rather than streamline the shopping experience.

• Retail Media Potential is Significant but Limited by Traffic: In-store digital advertising offers unique opportunities, but low foot traffic hampers overall effectiveness.

• Inventory Management is Crucial: High rates of out-of-stock items undermine customer trust and satisfaction, highlighting a critical area for improvement.

• Same-Day Delivery is Amazon’s Growth Driver: Investments in fast delivery services are proving more impactful for Amazon’s grocery market share than their physical store advancements.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Sree Rajagopalan [01:02]: “We shape the future of commerce to drive your growth.”
• Peter V.S. Bond [02:55]: “Is Amazon going to be the next big competitor in this segment?”
• Jordan Burke [05:47]: “How long is that sustainable?”
• Peter V.S. Bond [08:33]: “Amazon's digital coupon experience may even be best in class.”
• Jordan Burke [14:04]: “Same day or faster is Amazon's biggest priority.”
• Peter V.S. Bond [18:23]: “Amazon's physical grocery experience... is still a C to me.”

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Conclusion

This episode of The CPG Guys provides a critical examination of Amazon’s current position in the omnichannel grocery landscape. While Amazon excels in areas like pricing and delivery speed, significant challenges in assortment, technological integration, and inventory management prevent it from fully realizing its potential as a leading grocery retailer. The hosts and guest Jordan Burke agree to monitor Amazon’s progress, anticipating substantial changes and improvements in the coming year.

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Listen to the full episode on cpgguys.com to gain deeper insights into Amazon’s strategies and the evolving grocery market.

Transcript

[Retail Media IQ]

Chain Drug Review's focus is on reaching the key decision makers across all retail channels, delivering comprehensive coverage of the latest shopping trends and in depth category analysis on health, beauty, over the counter products and wellness. Whether it's the latest trends, emerging technologies, or strategies for adapting to new consumer behaviors, Mass Market retailers deliver the critical information retailers need to navigate this dynamic environment. To subscribe to the newsletters of CDR and mmr, simply follow the hyperlinks in the digital liner notes of this episode. Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers are published by Retail Media iq. Welcome to the CPG Guys Podcast. Your hosts, Sree Rajagopalan and Peter V S Vand explore how brands and retailers engage consumers in an increasingly digitally driven world. And now, here are the CPG Guys.

[Sree Rajagopalan]

Hello and welcome to this special episode of the CPG Guys. I'm of course sri co Founder and co Host of the CPG Guys and also co founder and Partner of Think Blue Consulting who has builders, connectors and amplifiers. We shape the future of commerce to drive your growth. Get in touch with us by sending an email to shreenkblueconsulting Co that's co, not C O M. Please do listen to my older daughter Rhea Raj's music www.rearaj.com that's R H E A R A J and a new song, Hot Couture, which has now been out for a month. And my younger daughter Laura Rogers, a member of the Geffen Records Universal Music Group Cat's Eye, whose social followership is now in the multi multi millions. Unable to join me today because I'm actually out live at the Amazon Fresh Store Number one, Woodland Hills, California. Also the town that I called home with a very special guest. So unable to join me today is my fellow co founder Peter Vs Pon. I mean, he's not co hosting this podcast. He serves as Head of Industry and Client Engagement at Flywheel, the E Commerce Acceleration division of Omnicom. Before we get to our guest in this episode today, I'd ask you to consider following us on Apple Podcasts and leaving us both a rating and a review. That rating and review tells us how we're doing as a podcast and whether the quality of conversations we're having with our guests is exactly what you want. Of course, needless to say, in the digital liner notes of this episode, we'll include links to the LinkedIn profile of our guest, his company's website, so that you can access it on the go while we go on with our conversation. And now, live from Amazon Store Number one, my Special guest Jordan Burke, founder and CEO of Tomorrow, joins me to evaluate what is the latest and bestest and the greatest of how grocery is running within the store environment at this Amazon Fresh store number one. And we do a quick assessment of our opinions.

[Jordan Burke]

How's it going?

[Peter V S Vand]

It couldn't be better, Sree. I think you and I and global grocers around the world are wondering, is Amazon going to be the next big competitor in this segment?

[Jordan Burke]

So let me just jump right into that, right? Where are we today? Isn't this store number one?

[Peter V S Vand]

It is ground zero, Sree. I mean, we decided to come to where it started, Amazon Fresh number one. This is where their physical store initiatives really kicked in.

[Jordan Burke]

Woodland Hills, California, right in the LA metro area. Store number one. So what Jordan and I decided to come and do is try and see the sphere that exists in the marketplace globally. Amazon and Grocery is going to be an epic outcome for the consumer. We're here to see. Was it an epic outcome for you and me when we shopped and how was the convenience and experience? What do you think? You come from Walmart China.

[Peter V S Vand]

I'd say five years in sri. I think you and I both wouldn't call it epic. I think we'd say that Amazon is progressing, but man, is there a long way to go. Let's start with the technology.

[Jordan Burke]

But even before you do that, Jordan, I'd ask you, you come from Walmart China. Now, in China, technology is awesome, convenience is awesome, community based shopping is awesome, pricing is awesome. If you were to benchmark what you saw in Walmart China and what you're seeing after your experience today, give us a quick benchmark and then we can kind of outline the why.

[Peter V S Vand]

It's great that you asked the question sri, because in reality, this format that we're standing in front of was inspired by a Chinese format called freshhip or Alibaba's attempt to be great at Omni Grocery. If we compare this to the world's best Omni Grocery formats, for sri, the merchandise differentiation is just not there. There isn't a reason for customers to leave the grocers in this community to come into this.

[Jordan Burke]

So let me ask you that question point blank. So in this area, we have Ralph's, we have Bombs, we have Safeway, we have Whole Foods, and we have Trader Joe's. Now, customers are diverse across all of those, but they're unique to each of those two, mostly for loyalty. Benchmark it to five of those. Is the assortment here what you saw attractive enough for you to leave one of those with the discounts and values you get through loyalty to come here and shop.

[Peter V S Vand]

No, Amazon is trying to pay us to be here by investing in price and that is noticeable.

[Jordan Burke]

Right. We have 30% discount in many of the places. Yeah. If you have a credit card, you get just 5% off off the top. At the end of the day, in addition to your 30s, we saw plenty of other offers, must buys. We saw two for sevens, two for fours, two for nines. Just across the board, a lot of DST attractive offers, displays. How long is that sustainable?

[Peter V S Vand]

Well, from a pricing standpoint, it's exciting. But when you get to the product itself, there isn't anything different about this store versus all those others you mentioned. The private brand presence is okay. It's not exciting. The brand merchandise assortment is smaller in many categories. So I think the choice, the choice and the compelling nature of the product isn't great. Let's talk about convenience though, because we know today assortment, value and convenience are the three legs of the stool assortment.

[Jordan Burke]

We've said price investing, exciting, but yes, but it's not sustainable. Right now comes a very important piece which is convenience. So this cart used to be amazing because you could just pull it off the shelf, put it in. You don't have to scan anything. Collect your assortment other than the hot bar and salad bar, of course. You have to weigh them and you walk out. What's changed?

[Peter V S Vand]

Yeah, so just walk out was the vision. Today it's just walk around with a self checkout machine on a car. This is really not innovation that adds value to the customer experience as you and I experience. It just creates a self scan experience where you still have to pay, you still have to scan everything. It really doesn't remove friction like the just walkout vision intended.

[Jordan Burke]

And we literally had to scan every single item. And so let me ask you another question, right? So there's another technology in the marketplace that exists called the Instacart Capercard.

[Peter V S Vand]

Right.

[Jordan Burke]

How do you find that one versus this?

[Peter V S Vand]

Yeah, Capercart is intending to be more just walk out. Right. It's got cameras and scales where you can drop an item in and be done with it. This cart requires that you line up a UPC code with a camera. You've got to be almost a cash register operator to run this baby.

[Jordan Burke]

Sam's club has that scan and go. So I see it as similar except you're scanning with the app. So why invest in the tech?

[Peter V S Vand]

Even better. I think Sam's has it figured out. I mean we're biased because we Believe mobile checkout's the cheapest, most sustainable way for a reason to do it. Why don't you talk about your scan to coupon experience that we had?

[Jordan Burke]

I actually like the scan to coupon experience because what it had me do, there were kiosks, but if I scan my actual prime QR code, it knew who I am and it offered me coupons based on past purchasing behavior and what was relevant in my behavior, which I actually liked because we tried quite a few. We tried beverages, we tried snacks and they were offers across the board. And in one particular instance in dairy, even though it wasn't offering any milk or yogurt or fresh cheese, it did took Parmesan. It did take Parmesan cheese more the spreadable one and the shaker and it was kind of connecting it back to dairy, which I thought was actually pretty cool.

[Peter V S Vand]

Yeah, it wasn't fat. I think we would argue that Amazon's digital coupon experience may even be best in class.

[Jordan Burke]

Would you? I have to say yes, absolutely. But in that very digital experience you speak to, there was an Alexa interaction you had in store. And you know, Alexa started out as the best of the best. Siri came before Alexa, but for limited uses inside a phone like maps and a few questions. The world is advanced, but Alexa was pretty cool. How was it cool?

[Peter V S Vand]

Alexa was cool like the 1980s. Like, oh, we feel for the Alexa team who had a vision of creating a real agent. ChatGPT has just taken that space and we proved it. The Alexa kiosk in the store still felt like 80% of the questions it couldn't answer it.

[Jordan Burke]

Just as tech, that first generation, it.

[Peter V S Vand]

Still feels like first generation.

[Jordan Burke]

Five years ago, pretty cool to chat with Alexa. But now you could have whipped out a chat GPT and you may even have gotten the answer to your question. Who knows? We should have tried that.

[Peter V S Vand]

Let's try. Hey, let's talk about something that is truly working. The media proposition.

[Jordan Burke]

SRI loved it. Loved it. Yeah. Talk about why, to me, the biggest attractive feature. We are in a world where retail media brands are challenging retail media network providers. Amazon has 77 cents to every dollar in the retail media network universe. It's theirs to lose and to protect it and grow it, they need more properties or inventory. Now one of the best forms of inventory in groceries, in store retail media. When you have that many screens inside the store and you're contextualizing the screen to the aisle, you have a winning formula. What do you think?

[Peter V S Vand]

I'm with you. We have not seen a More powerful in store media proposition than Amazon Freshest stores. The irony of course, SRI is that the traffic remains low. The store counts sub 60. So the quantity of inventory still isn't cute though as an advertiser, you're probably buying that via Programmatic where you're getting other inventory online, offline, and this is just part of that buy. But man, when it works, it works right in that poultry category.

[Jordan Burke]

Fabulous.

[Peter V S Vand]

Re related throughout the story, you've got.

[Jordan Burke]

Unique exposure to me. The issue you kind of highlight still is until you get traffic, you can only monetize it. But this capability to monetize is still better than anything I've seen.

[Peter V S Vand]

Which.

[Jordan Burke]

Which I'm going to move us to the next section before we wrap up and pass judgment. How's the over? And that is you and I decided to go pick up an item from the hot bar. So let's say what it is and how that experience was. Were we able to check it out? Was it easy? What happened?

[Peter V S Vand]

Not just any item. Sree. Maybe give some background. Why samosas from the hot bar today.

[Jordan Burke]

So first of all, in any retail environment, I never see a samosa. The only two places I've seen is Amazon Fresh today and Whole Foods consistently. I cannot explain why. Maybe it's just owner's fantasy. Whatever it is. Right. So I'm like, we got these samosas, Jordan. Let's try them. And so but you have to pay for them. So we pick them up and talk about the paying experience. How was it as we try these.

[Peter V S Vand]

Again, back to our self. Checkout on wheels here. We couldn't figure out a way to get the cart to recognize the item. I think I typed Somoza correctly five times. Search function. And it didn't work. No result Foundation. Amazon search up your game. And finally we finally we had to. Thanks for checking in. Yeah. We couldn't get our samosa to scan on the cart, so we were just checking how to make it work.

[Jordan Burke]

Oh sure. You just ask anybody like us. I could have helped you with that.

[Peter V S Vand]

Oh.

[Jordan Burke]

So actually this. So this is what happened right after we went through. We couldn't. We went to the counter and did it in the physical way. But what I learned is you can't say samosa.

[Peter V S Vand]

You just put it half bar.

[Jordan Burke]

You have to say half bar. It's better than a restaurant samosa, which shocked me. Now let's wrap this up as we taste test the question of the day.

[Peter V S Vand]

Go for it.

[Jordan Burke]

You said there were three things. What were the three things?

[Peter V S Vand]

Assortment.

[Jordan Burke]

Yep.

[Peter V S Vand]

Value, convenience.

[Jordan Burke]

Why don't you rate each of the three?

[Peter V S Vand]

I still think they get a B minus on assortment because other than rate samosa, I don't see a lot that's going to make me want to walk out of a Trader Joe's, a Sprouts or even a Ralph's value. Really exciting. In terms of promo value. Plus the coupons and the investment in. Yeah. In promotionally differentiating themselves.

[Jordan Burke]

Customized coupons. Yeah.

[Peter V S Vand]

Thank you. And yes, the. The digitally customized coupons and the ease of use of that application was next level. So if I'm looking for savings and I don't need a differentiated assortment, then it comes down to convenience. Can I get in and out quickly? And there I. I personally would give them a B to B plus.

[Jordan Burke]

I was still going to give it an A minus. But I'm going to agree with you on the BB plus because of our experience with the hot bar. Now how are you and I supposed to know that we have to search for a hot bar over here? If a sign would have helped.

[Peter V S Vand]

Yeah.

[Jordan Burke]

Which kind of changed the whole purpose of the convenience. Right. Because I had to go through a checkout lane and then you know what, thanks for coming.

[Peter V S Vand]

Doubled the amount of time checking out.

[Jordan Burke]

Yep. Yep.

[Peter V S Vand]

Can we zoom out for a second though? Because this is one example of a grocery initiative for Amazon, but it might not even be their biggest.

[Jordan Burke]

Yep.

[Peter V S Vand]

Our view is that Amazon's race to same day or faster delivery is probably having a bigger impact on their growth.

[Jordan Burke]

Absolutely. What's your view? So I'm going to say for pantry. Right. Which is where they started this whole journey, they're definitely going to continue to win the race because let me ask you as a consumer, right when you want to learn about something, do you go to any other website other than Amazon.com or the app?

[Peter V S Vand]

It's a great question. I used to start at Walmart. I used to start at Kramer.

[Jordan Burke]

But you were a Walmart employee when.

[Peter V S Vand]

It was core grocery biases aside, I used to see other places as the place to be if I needed something that day, including pantry. That changed.

[Jordan Burke]

And they know I can do ultra fast delivery. What do you do?

[Peter V S Vand]

I now see Amazon as an in day solution. And so my order quantity went up 3x on Amazon last year because of that same day.

[Jordan Burke]

And it's not just grocery, even home care, personal care. Now that you know you can get 6 hour 8 hour delivery, are you even bothering to go to another? Do you even price check?

[Peter V S Vand]

Far less unless it's a significant consideration purchase. But pets, baby cleaning Supplies, paper supplies. Amazon is capturing a ton of share.

[Jordan Burke]

If it's over 999, so 10 bucks is my threshold. I will look on other sites to price shop. If it's less than 999, I'm confident I'm getting the best price on Amazon.

[Peter V S Vand]

So we know. We just talked about Walmart earnings and how speed was so prominent in Doug's comments. But if you look At Amazon's earnings, two weeks ago they announced that 140 cities, excuse me, in the US now have same day or faster delivery, up from 90 a year ago. It's a 50% increase in coverage.

[Jordan Burke]

Big deal.

[Peter V S Vand]

And it's coming to Canada, Australia and the uk. Globally, same day or faster is Amazon's biggest priority. And it really does affect their grocery share.

[Jordan Burke]

Absolutely. And it begs to ask a question. Is Amazon greater supply chain than merchandising? Because we saw merchandising here, physical, not digital.

[Peter V S Vand]

100%. The art and science of being a great omnichannel retailer haven't yet striked the right balance at Amazon. That science is enabling that same day or faster experience. And the art of being great when you're here in person is still not perfect.

[Jordan Burke]

And one last item before we wrap this up. We gave grades and that is convenience and stock. How did you find the store stocked? And there was one such incident we found in the party aisle, which I think it'll be remiss if we don't talk about.

[Peter V S Vand]

Yeah, yeah, great. Omnichannel retail, as you know as well as anybody, requires consistent execution of in stock. And this is an area.

[Jordan Burke]

What happens when a consumer sees something out of stock?

[Peter V S Vand]

Yeah, you come all the way here, you pass a Ralph's and you're out of stock. And like we saw in about 20% of shelving here in Amazon, It's a.

[Jordan Burke]

Real painful experience coming from the industry. You and I both know the number one thing we're taught in merchandising. You're out of stock, they ain't coming back.

[Peter V S Vand]

That's right. That's right. And we talked about a story. A legendary Walmart store manager used to say that when he tore a store, he was a district manager, excuse me, and he'd see out of stocks. If he could fit himself into that out of stock, that was a serious problem. He literally would lay down on the shelf to illustrate the impact of that. Out of stock.

[Jordan Burke]

I'd call that a retail crime. If you got that much space and out of stock, you're doing, you're shortchanging the Consumer. But John, I'm going to reset that a little bit. If he could fit in, that's fix it now. Call the vendor. If it's dst, go back room, call your warehouse, the nearest distribution center, crosstalk, whatever it is. You get a few hours to fix it. But if I can fit in it, you're fired. You're fired.

[Peter V S Vand]

To process that for a minute.

[Jordan Burke]

Sri, it's a good point. I could fit in the party stock aisle. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Because if there's one aisle that Amazon dominates inside out, what is it? Jordan?

[Peter V S Vand]

Paper party supplies. Yeah. And you and I both could have fit in there if we really wanted to prove a point.

[Jordan Burke]

So overall grade of the experience, I.

[Peter V S Vand]

Think Amazon's physical grocery experience, this one particularly is still a C to me.

[Jordan Burke]

I don't want to agree with you, but unfortunately that is the grade. It's a C. The reason I don't want to agree is I'm emotional about Amazon. I mean my career changed because I moved into E Com and I started working with Amazon at Frito when it was a $5 million grocery business. Non existent. So I built this thing. To see it like this, it feels sad.

[Peter V S Vand]

Well, look, leadership has changed. Jason is now taking leadership here coming from Whole Foods. He's an Accenture turned Whole Foods retailer, but looks like from Whole Foods recent progress. It could be an inspiring.

[Jordan Burke]

Whole Foods merchandising has actually really cleaned up its act. This assortment is improved, choices have improved. So I think we close it out by saying we're looking forward. And Jordan, are you and I committing to coming back in six months store number one and seeing what's changed?

[Peter V S Vand]

Yeah, I'd give them a year. Sree, I think we will watch together Amazon's progress over this year, particularly on that same day or faster development. But let's come back here in nine to 12 months, let's invite Jason along and let's tour it and see do we feel like it's got the art and science.

[Jordan Burke]

You didn't tell the audience who Jason is.

[Peter V S Vand]

Jason, the new CEO of Amazon Grocery.

[Jordan Burke]

There we go.

[Peter V S Vand]

Technically, but leading all Amazon Grocery efforts coming out of whole foods.

[Jordan Burke]

So February 2026. Can our audience look forward to one year in? What's changed?

[Peter V S Vand]

Yeah, let's see what questions you have. But let's all meet back here at that time and let's rate it then.

[Jordan Burke]

So Jordan, thank you for joining me on this expedition. This was fabulous. We promised to do this when we met up at Shop Talk Barcelona. All places over dinner. It's only taken eight months now. We have a whole year to plan so we're not missing February 2026. It's been a pleasure man. It's been a pleasure.

[Peter V S Vand]

Good tour.

[Jordan Burke]

That's it guys. See you soon on another episode.

[Sree Rajagopalan]

Wow, that was fun to actually do a short form podcast live from a store for those of you who actually want to watch us in store. This episode will be chopped up into four minute clips, approximately four minutes in nature, and shared over the course of this week right after the release of this podcast. So do if you want to see the video version, that's the best way for you to see it. I want to thank Jordan for joining me and doing this together with me in my local hometown right here in Woodland Hills, California. And now let me remind the audience that you can find all of our content simply by going to a web browser and typing cpguys.com@the URL. And if you think you or your company has some thought leadership to contribute to a community discussion just like Jordan from tomorrow did today, drop us an [e-mail] and maybe you can join us on the podcast. Don't forget to drop us a rating as requested before on cpgcast.com at the top navigation bar on the Apple Podcast. The ratings and reviews help let us know whether we're having the right conversations with the right people, the quality of the show, and whether we get just simply getting it right to all our followers on LinkedIn. Thank you, thank you, thank you for the clicks, likes, direct messages, meeting us at conference, recording podcasts with us at the conference remotely in person, and most importantly to our sponsors. This show doesn't exist without you, so I can't say thank you enough times. And that's a wrap of this special episode of the CPG Guys.

[CPG Guys LLC]

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