Instacart said on Thursday it will stop delivering groceries for Whole Foods next year, ending a partnership that has been under stress since Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) bought the upmarket grocer last year.
Amazon’s $13.7 billion purchase of Whole Foods in August 2017 has been a double-edged sword for Instacart, throwing the Whole Foods relationship into doubt while driving rival grocers such as Kroger (KR.N), Aldi and Costco (COST.O) into Instacart’s arms.
“Amazon’s intent from day one … was to integrate Whole Foods with its own grocery-delivery efforts such as Amazon Fresh and Prime Now,” Tom Forte, an analyst with D.A. Davidson said.
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