Last week, Amazon launched a new, own same-day delivery service for perishable food products in Frankfurt am Main, Cologne and Munich. The online retailer is integrating fresh groceries into its same-day product range and is delivering it alongside non-food items.
Thanks to this synergy effect in the last mile, grocery deliveries – including chilled and frozen goods – to households could with this be carried out profitably for the first time in Germany.
The new same-day fresh food service includes, amongst other products, chilled and frozen items from Markant’s private label range Hofgut. As this brand is used exclusively by the regional Kiel-based trading company Bartels-Langness (Bela), it is reasonable to assume that Amazon sources it from there.
Amazon does not name Bartels-Langness
Although Amazon Germany itself confirmed, in response to an enquiry from The Retail Optimiser via its spokesperson Christine Maukel, that for its fresh food range it works not only with manufacturers and producers but also with “established retail partners in the grocery sector” it strictly refrains from naming any partners.
The collaboration with Bartels-Langness is interesting because, in its first home delivery trial for fresh produce – now discontinued – under the name Amazon Fresh, the online retail giant had worked with Bünting as its supplier. Bünting and Bartels-Langness are both members of the Markant group.
Amazon is once again setting up its own fresh produce logistics
For the new service, Amazon has expanded existing distribution centres to include refrigerated areas. Its own staff carry out the order picking there. In response to The Retail Optimiser, Amazon spokesperson Christine Maukel stated: “Yes, that is correct.” Amazon is therefore once again storing, picking and packing perishable goods itself.
This distinguishes the new approach from the openly listed shops of the grocery retailers Knuspr and Tegut on Amazon.de. With the new same-day service, Amazon manages the storage and picking itself. Knuspr remains accessible via the platform and is therefore both a partner and a competitor of the online retailer. Tegut is currently being wound up and will disappear from the market entirely, meaning it will no longer be a partner of Amazon.
No separate app required
Overall, the range now includes, amongst other things, fruit, vegetables, meat, poultry, fish, dairy products, eggs, baked goods and frozen foods. The items appear in the standard search on Amazon.de as well as in the Amazon Shopping app, provided the user lives in one of the postcode areas served by the service. These customers do not need a separate app or to register separately.
Prime members receive orders of 29 Euros or more within a four-hour delivery window with no delivery charge. For orders below this value, Amazon charges 3.99 Euros, whilst customers without a Prime membership pay 9.99 Euros regardless of the order value. A two-hour delivery slot costs Prime members either 2.90 Euros or 4.90 Euros, depending on the order value. Non-members pay 10.99 Euros.
Amazon Fresh launched in Berlin in 2017
With Amazon Fresh, the company had already launched its own food delivery service in parts of Berlin and Potsdam on 4 May 2017. Around 85,000 items were available to choose from at the outset. Amazon stored the goods in a depot in Berlin-Tegel, picked the orders there and initially had them delivered by DHL.
Bünting was also one of the suppliers to Amazon’s grocery business. The northern German retail company had been supplying Amazon with ambient foods since 2011. Later, Amazon Fresh also partnered with Tegut and more than 25 local Berlin suppliers.
Amazon Fresh remained limited to three regions
On 19 July 2017, Amazon Fresh expanded its delivery area to Hamburg. Orders for the Hanseatic city were also fulfilled from the Berlin depot. Insulated bags containing ice packs or dry ice were used to maintain the required temperatures during the longer journey.
Munich followed on 8 November 2017 as the third region. The majority of the goods there came from a newly built refrigerated logistics centre in Daglfing. In addition, Amazon had products delivered from around 20 local suppliers, including Dallmayr and traders from the Viktualienmarkt.
Amazon discontinued Fresh in 2024
Amazon Fresh never expanded beyond Berlin, Potsdam, Hamburg and Munich in Germany. On 14 December 2024, the online retailer discontinued the service after more than seven years. Shortly before this, Amazon had entered into a partnership with Knuspr to continue offering customers fresh, chilled and frozen products.
At the time, Amazon stated that it had reviewed its offering and its logistics network. The company wanted to streamline its grocery offer on Amazon.de and focus on the extensive and growing store in ambient food.
The new initiative differs primarily in its shared shopping basket and integration into Amazon Fresh’s existing same-day infrastructure. Further metropolitan areas are set to follow in the coming weeks. The company has not yet announced specific locations, dates or the number of products available.
