Amazon Uses Cashback To Increase Whole Foods Shopping By Prime Members

When it was announced that Amazon was buying Whole Foods, many wondered what changes the merchant giant would implement. As it turns out, not that much, at least for now. One of Amazon’s more major moves with regards to the health food chain is to simply offer its Prime members cashback if they shop at Whole Foods.

The cashback applies to cardholders of Amazon’s Prime club, with members being eligible for rebates at various rates depending on where they shop and what they buy, Ars Technica reports. Among the perks include the five percent on any purchases on the merchant giant’s main online store. Members who dine in affiliate restaurants will also get a two percent cash back, and the same goes for gas stations and pharmaceutical purchases.

For those wondering, cashback is also being offered to non-Prime members but the benefits are not as good. Cashback only goes as high as three percent when shopping at Whole Foods for customers who don’t have a Prime membership. Then again, considering the prices of the items being sold in these chains, such a percentage might be enough to get some of the expenses back.

As Recode notes, this move follows the two-hour delivery service of orders from Whole Foods for Prime members that Amazon implemented earlier in the month. The company is hoping that with the cashback program, more cardholders will be enticed to shop at the arguably more expensive health chain.

Considering people’s love for consumerism and the prospect of saving, regardless of how counterintuitive, this will most likely work. On top of that, with consumers using Amazon’s own card for shopping, the company should save on credit card expenses as well.

All in all, Amazon seems to be making some headway into turning its $14 billion investment into a profitable venture. It also paved the way for an increased likelihood of a monopoly by the merchant giant.