As Amazon decline to comment on Ocado interest, a look at Jeff Bezos’s potential bid for supermarket group

Ocado’s shares were up 43% on the London stock exchange following a report by The Times that Jeff Bezos’s Amazon might be interested in the supermarket group. The Times reported that “The shares, rated ‘underweight’ by JP Morgan, fell by 10 10½p to 424p  on Tuesday, but yesterday Ocado spent most of the session at the top of the FTSE 100 leaderboard as speculation of bid interest from more than one American suitor took hold. The talk was that technology heavyweights such as Amazon were pondering the merits of an £8-a-share move — with Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan, as it happens, said to be acting for bidders.”

This is not the first time Amazon have been linked to a takeover of the supermarket group, however.

Back in 2016, there was talk of Amazon’s Jeff Bezos potentially bidding for Ocado. Business Insider reported in January 2016 that “Last year (2015), a source told Business Insider that Amazon founder and CEO  Jeff Bezos once met with Ocado CEO Tim STeiner and that Bezos is an admirer of Ocado’s operation, the bosses of both companies are already on personal terms.”

At its AGM in May,  nearly a third of Ocado investors voted against Tim Steiner’s £2m pay. According to Retail Gazette, “A total of 30.14% of investors voted against Steiner’s remuneration package. The Ocado co-founder was paid a £775,000 salary for the year and a bonus of £1.19 million in a year when the online grocer’s losses widened to £500 million.”

Aside from Ocado, Amazon is also in the news at the moment as the US Federal Trade Commission has accused the company of duping millions of consumers into enrolling in Prime. 

Who are Ocado?

Ocado is a British online supermarket and technology company that specializes in grocery retailing. It was founded in the year 2000 and has since become one of the leading online grocery retailers in the United Kingdom.

Unlike traditional supermarkets with physical stores, Ocado operates solely online, allowing customers to browse and purchase groceries through their website or mobile app. The company offers a wide range of products, including fresh produce, pantry staples, household items, and more.

One notable aspect of Ocado is its highly automated and technologically advanced fulfillment centers. Instead of relying on traditional manual picking and packing processes, Ocado employs state-of-the-art robotics and automated systems to manage order fulfillment. This advanced infrastructure enables efficient and accurate processing of orders, from selecting items to packing and dispatching them for delivery.

As of writing, Ocado is worth an estimated $4.70 billion USD.