Amazon drops monthly fee to boost grocery delivery sales
Amazon Fresh grocery delivery truck from the Amazon Prime service parked on a suburban street in San Ramon, California, July 5, 2018. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)
NEW YORK - Amazon has a new plan to try and jumpstart its grocery delivery business: cut some fees for its Prime members.
The online retailer says it will no longer charge $15 a month for its Amazon Fresh service, which delivers raw meat, vegetables and other groceries to customers' doorsteps. But the service is only for subscribers of its Prime membership, which costs $119 a year. And at least $35 must be spent to qualify for free delivery in two hours.
Delivery is still a tiny part of the $740 billion grocery market, but Amazon thinks that dropping its fees will attract more people to the service. To handle a jump in users, Amazon is only offering it to those already signed up for Fresh. Others will have to request an invitation.