Amazon -- June 20, 2017

I find the hysteria about the Amazon - Whole Foods hook-up fascinating. I was part of the hysteria the day it was announced. Since them, plenty of time to think about it.

I did not care for this article; the writer seemed not to understand the current US laws on monopolies.

At this point in time, 2:23 p.m. Central Time, June 20, 2017, this is how I see Amazon:

• cloud computing; and,
• Amazon Prime

And that's it. I'm not sure where The Washington Post fits into the mix but that story may be told another day.

But this is how I see Amazon:

• cloud computing; and,
• Amazon prime.

According to the linked article Amazon controls 40% of internet cloud computing. Its only real competitor might be Alphabet/Google. Ankle-biters would include Apple, Microsoft, Yahoo, Facebook, others.

The linked article has been corrected. It originally said Amazon also controlled 30% of on-line and off-line retail sales. That has since been corrected; Amazon was responsible for 30% growth in on-line and off-line retail sales in the past year. Big difference. I believe I read somewhere else that Amazon controls 8% of US on-line and off-line retail sales -- it's interesting the writer did not provide that data point. It suggests to me the writer realizes his/her thesis that Amazon is running a monopoly is absolutely poppy-cock. Controlling 8% of any market is nowhere close to a monopoly. Give me a break.

Anyway, back to Amazon Prime and cloud computing.

How does Whole Paycheck fit into Amazon?

There's a lot of talk about all the reasons Amazon bought Whole Paycheck.

Including distribution centers.

Distribution centers make no sense whatsoever. Absolutely doesn't fit the business model. Incredibly inefficient. The reason folks order on-line is so they get the stuff delivered to their door; not so they have to drive somewhere to pick it up. Incredibly inefficient for Amazon and incredibly inefficient for the customer.

This is where I think Whole Paycheck fits. First, three facts:

• Whole Paycheck is a really, really upscale restaurant;
• every regular shopper at Whole Paycheck is also an Amazon Prime member; 
• Jeff Bezos goal seems to be to really impress the Amazon Prime member's experience; and,
• Jeff Bezos keeps looking for "freebies" to offer Amazon Prime members who are willing to pay huge bucks to be a member of what might become an exclusive club with 75% of US citizens enrolled (LOL)

Because I'm running out of time: Whole Paycheck becomes another "freebie" for Amazon Prime members. Amazon Prime members loved Amazon Grocery Delivery but it was too costly for Jeff Bezos and not universally available. Whole Paycheck will go a long way to solving those two problems. Amazon Prime members will be thrilled to shop for fresh produce at Whole Paycheck, even if they have to do their own in-store buying.

Readers can connect the dots. For Jeff Bezos, it's always been all about the customer.