Consumer News: Amazon Prime Pantry
/
WHO WOULD WANT THIS?
•Urban Dwellers Who Don’t Cook: I’ve met a surprisingly large number of people who live in major cities but who rarely, if ever, cook at home. They eat out, get take-out, or order every meal. But these people also tend to have things like soda, cereal and snacks in their cupboards… and of course they need the usual suspects like toilet paper and soap.
But many densely populated cities lack proper supermarkets, forcing urban dwellers to pay extortionate corner store prices. Having a service that delivers these pantry staples cheaply and efficiently to their doors may be appealing.
•Senders Of Care Packages: Got a kid living off ramen cooked on a hot plate in her college dorm room? Prime Pantry seems tailor-made for the parent or loved one who wants to treat someone to a box full of stuff to someone who could use cookies, deodorant and toothpaste.
•Rural Shoppers Who Want To Save A Trip To The Store: Some rural areas of the country face a similar problem to densely populated urban centers — a lack of readily available quality supermarkets. And sometimes those stores don’t carry items for shoppers with specific dietary needs, like food allergies. A service like Prime Pantry wouldn’t solve all these issues for everyone, but it could be used to supplement trips to the supermarket.
•Consumers Without Cars: For people who don’t drive or don’t have ready access to a vehicle, supermarket shopping can be a huge pain in the read-end, especially for the non-perishable items. Shopping without a car means you often have to sacrifice value for convenience; for example, buying only a single roll of paper towels instead of the 8-pack. Every non-perishable item you can get delivered to your door is one you don’t have to carry home from the store.
WHO WOULDN’T WANT THIS:
•Extreme Couponers: Prime Pantry does offer coupons on some items, but people who are practiced in the coupon martial arts will probably want to stick with their current shopping habits.
•Food Snobs: While there are a handful of smaller brands available on Prime Pantry, most food snobs will turn their noses up at almost every item. This is not the place to pick up items you can brag to your friends about having in your kitchen.
•Anyone Who Needs Things Quickly: Yes, ordering online is incredibly convenient and may be less expensive than going to the store. But if you’re going to run out of dishwashing detergent tomorrow, Prime Pantry isn’t going to help. The delivery estimates on Pantry orders are upwards of 3-4 business days, so it’s not for people with any urgent needs.
•Warehouse Shoppers: Even though Prime Pantry is all about shipping items in bulk to save time and money, it’s not about actually buying in bulk. So if you’re a fan of going to Costco and buying a stack of toilet paper the size of a dog house, or if you looked at the earlier mention of a 30-oz. jar of mayo and went “Is that all?”… then you’re probably best sticking with your local warehouse store.
Would you use this service???
