Amazon's Prime Pantry delivery service is no more
The service launched in 2014 as a way to order heavy non-perishables in one big box.
Amazon Prime Pantry, the e-commerce giant’s early foray into grocery delivery, is dead. The company launched Prime Pantry for household items and non-perishable food and snacks back in 2014, giving customers a way to stock up on the heavy items they need for their homes that don’t usually ship for free. Now, it’s gone, shut down for good by Amazon on Wednesday.
A spokesperson told Bloomberg that the thousands of products previously available under the Pantry banner have been folded into Amazon’s main retail site. When Pantry first launched, it allowed Prime members to ship up to 45 pounds’ worth of household essentials in one large box for a $6 flat fee on top of their subscription. In 2018, the company changed the way it works, offering it to buyers as a $5-a-month subscription service for unlimited deliveries. The customers who’ve been paying $5 a month for it apparently received a notification about its shutdown back in December, along with refunds for their subscription.
The spokesperson’s full statement reads:
“As part of our commitment to delivering the best possible customer experience, we have decided to transfer Amazon Pantry selection to the main Amazon.com store so customers can get everyday household products faster, without an extra subscription or purchase requirement.”
In the midst of coronavirus-related lockdowns back in 2020, Amazon had to suspend Pantry deliveries due to a high volume of orders. It’s unclear if Pantry orders have thinned out considerably since then or if it’s just logistically and financially more sound for Amazon to sell non—perishable grocery items through its main site. The company’s fresh food delivery service is still very much active, though, and still offers free 2-hour deliveries with Prime.
