Amazon Fresh is trying to remind customers it’s not just a fancy returns point

A website advertising “up to $12 off $40 at Amazon Fresh” for customers who make a return mentions that the offer is valid between April 17 and June 30 of this year or until Amazon runs out of codes for the promotion.

An Amazon spokesperson confirmed the discounts, adding that they apply when customers make a return at any of the chain’s roughly 40 locations. “We see many of the customers who return or pickup packages in store each week also combine it with a shopping trip,” the spokesperson said.

Amazon is likely trying to accomplish two things with the coupons, said Phil Lempert, a food industry analyst and editor of the website Supermarket Guru.

The discounts are meant to get customers making returns to stick around and buy groceries, he said. But they also save Amazon money processing returns — having customers bring items to an Amazon-owned location is cheaper for the company than sending them return packaging and a shipping label.

“It’s a combination of reducing costs as well as trying to get new people to shop at Amazon Fresh,” Lempert said.

Beyond the discounts, Amazon is still struggling to find a strategy for Fresh that works.

Amazon, which also owns Whole Foods, has made several changes to Fresh stores over the last year. Most recently, it pulled out its cashier-less Just Walk Out technology from Fresh stores in favor of its Dash shopping carts, which keep track of shoppers’ selections and charge them accordingly. Amazon has also renovated a handful of the stores, adding Krispy Kreme doughnut shops and more major food brands.

“They’re really not resonating,” Lempert said of the stores. “I am a major Amazon.com shopper. I could not live without Amazon.com. I can live without Amazon Fresh.”

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