Amazon adds, expands Prime Now markets in time for holidays

SEATTLE — It’s not like the holidays weren’t going to be challenging enough, but now Amazon.com is expanding its free same-day delivery service to more markets.

Amazon.com said it expanded it Prime free same-day delivery to Chicago and Orlando and new locations in the greater New York, northern New Jersey and Philadelphia area. The service, which requires an annual $99 Prime membership fee, is now available in 750 cities in 16 metropolitan areas. It launched it May.

That is not good news for operators of physical stores, many of who are still looking to optimize their omnichannel strategies and fine-tune promotional strategies designed to generate traffic to stores. Meanwhile, Amazon.com is raising the bar on shoppers’ expectations by telling customers they can order from an assortment of more than one million items as late as noon and receive same day orders over $35 before bed time, seven days a week.

“We’re focused on making Prime better and better and every day members discover how Prime Free Same-Day Delivery can make their lives easier,” said Greg Greeley, vice president of Amazon Prime.

In addition to the markets mentioned above, the free same-day delivery is available in Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Dallas-Ft Worth, Indianapolis, the Greater Los Angeles area, Phoenix, San Diego, the San Francisco Bay area including Oakland and San Jose, Seattle-Tacoma, the Tampa Bay area and Washington, D.C.

In the new Chicago market, coverage extends from downtown north to Evanston and Arlington Heights, west to Glen Ellyn and Downers Grove, and south to Oak Lawn. Coverage in Orlando extends north to Sanford and Deltona, south to Kissimmee, as well as eastern and western suburbs such as Clermont, Winter Garden and Winter Park. New coverage also includes additional areas in Brooklyn and Queens in New York City, Northern New Jersey stretching from Newark to Paterson and beyond, and additional locations in the downtown area of Philadelphia.