The world’s third largest retailer, Amazon, is creating a bigger, more official footprint in selling live plants online. While purchasing plants through Amazon is nothing new, their push seems to focus on having more eligible Amazon prime items. They’ve also teamed up with Proven Winners, which is comprised of two leading U.S. plant propagators out of Carleton, MI and Loudon, NH and boasts that it is the #1 plant seller.
Part of me is excited about the possibilities of Amazon Live Plants – I can more easily purchase exactly what I want and save money on shipping by being a Prime member. Even better, when I want to send a plant as a gift to friends who are far away, I can easily do so through Amazon Live Plants. As a bonus, my friend will receive information on the proper care of the plant as part of the gift.
The other part of me is concerned for the ability of local flower shops, nurseries, and seed stores to compete with Amazon. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think major buyers like farmers or folks redesigning their landscapes will flock to Amazon, but it’s possible that many consumers, when ordering plants online, won’t bother looking up local options since Amazon is so easy to use.
What do you think? Will the local market be able to compete with Amazon?