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        <title><![CDATA[Amazon will not accept new grocery delivery customers amid spike in orders]]></title>
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            <media:title type="html">Amazon will not accept new grocery delivery customers amid spike in orders</media:title>
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        <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Amazon&#8217;s grocery delivery services will no longer accept any new customers, at a time when locked down shoppers desperately look for <strong>alternatives to brick and mortar grocery stores</strong>.</p><p>Anyone who enrolls beginning Monday will instead be added to a waitlist — with an indefinite wait time.</p><p>Prior to the announcement Sunday, Amazon customers have complained about a lack of available delivery time slots for <strong>Amazon Fresh</strong> or <strong>Amazon Prime Now</strong>, which shops from Whole Foods locations around the country and provides day-of delivery. In an initial effort to mitigate delays, the Seattle-based ​e-commerce company added 70 new Whole Foods pickup locations — up to 150 from just 80.</p><p>Amazon Fresh and Prime Now workers shop from the retailer&#8217;s own warehouses, as well as Whole Foods stores. The company also promises ultra-fast delivery within a few hours of the order being placed. In an apparent move to consolidate their supermarket services, Amazon suspended the Prime Pantry delivery service last month, which sells only non-perishable goods.</p><p>Since the <strong>coronavirus outbreak</strong> began, Amazon claims capacity for online orders has jumped more than 60 percent. But those who pay $119 per year for an Amazon Prime membership have complained on social media about delays and the lack of available delivery windows.</p><figure id="attachment_15477207"  class="wp-caption alignleft"><strong><noscript><img data- data-src="/uploads/2020/04/amazon-deliveries-11.jpg" class="lazyload" src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==" /><noscript><img  data-src="/uploads/2020/04/amazon-deliveries-11.jpg" /></noscript></noscript><img class="lazyload" src='data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns=%22http://www.w3.org/2000/svg%22%20viewBox=%220%200%20210%20140%22%3E%3C/svg%3E' data- data-src="/uploads/2020/04/amazon-deliveries-11.jpg" /></strong><figcaption class="wp-caption-text"><span>Whole Foods</span><span class="credit">REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton</span></figcaption></figure><p>Amazon, which purchased Whole Foods Market for $13.7 billion back in 2017, said they also plan to abbreviate stores’ hours to the public so that their employees can have better access to fulfill online grocery orders. Some high-traffic locations will shut-out the public altogether, such as New York&#8217;s Bryant Park store, which <strong>sent an email to local customers</strong> on Monday morning stating they will be &#8220;will be temporarily closed to focus on grocery deliveries.&#8221;</p><p>Other locations, including Columbus Circle, Midtown East or Union Square, remain open for all shoppers.</p><p>Amazon&#8217;s 487 Whole Foods stores nationwide are already <strong>limiting the number of shoppers in the store at once</strong>, and performing daily employee temperature checks as well as requiring workers to wear masks and gloves.</p><p>The company said they soon hope to meet demand by adding more shoppers to their roster, and plans to launch a new feature that will give customers a chance to secure their virtual &#8220;place in line&#8221; — so that delivery times are distributed on a first come, first serve basis. Previously, Prime users could only hope to get lucky by shopping at a time when a shopper happened to be available.</p><p>Meanwhile, high-profile protests by workers at Whole Foods and Amazon fulfillment centers <strong>are still underway,</strong> which blame their employer for unsafe working conditions. <strong>More than 50</strong> of Amazon&#8217;s warehouses and Whole Foods stores reportedly have confirmed COVID-19 cases.</p><p>&#8220;We still expect the combination of restricted capacity due to social distancing and customer demand will continue to make finding available delivery windows challenging for customers,&#8221; Stephenie Landry, vice president of grocery delivery at Amazon, wrote on the company&#8217;s blog. &#8220;If you are able to do so safely, we kindly encourage our customers who can to shop in-person.&#8221;</p>]]></content:encoded>
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