Print works, just ask Jeff Bezos

Just in time for Valentine’s Day comes a deal on roses, with all the information on where to buy two dozen of the indemand flowers in a full-page newspaper advertisement. In and of itself, a newspaper ad is not surprising. Except this advertisement was from a grocery store, in this case Whole Foods Market. Two-page grocery ads, once a staple of print newspapers everywhere, have faded — weekly inserts are about all the newspaper industry has of the once vibrant supermarket advertising business. Yet there it was, in the Sunday, Feb. 11, New Mexican, for all to see.

So why now and why Whole Foods? Well, last year, giant online marketer Amazon announced it was purchasing Whole Foods for a whopping $13.4 billion. Industry watchers have speculated what the merger will do for both businesses.

Amazon is the online purveyor of everything from food to books to outdoor gear, while Whole Foods has made its name selling healthy food (at a healthy profit, thus the nickname “Whole Paycheck”). The roses were a place to integrate the two businesses; Amazon Prime members could buy the two dozen flowers for $5 off.

More deals, more integration — it’s all part of the brave new retail world Whole Foods/Amazon is bringing. Prices will be going down at Whole Foods, in part so that Amazon customers can buy from the grocer — delivery in a few hours is the goal, with people able to shop without leaving their desks. For Amazon, industry analysts say it’s another step in the war against Wal-Mart, of all things. Amazon wants to control groceries and battle back against Wal-Mart’s incursions in e-commerce. The battlefield is broad, with innovations to come that most consumers can’t imagine.

And, yet, there was the throwback to the days when grocery store ads filled newspapers. Perhaps newspapers, including this one, have Jeff Bezos to thank. The Amazon CEO is also a newspaper man, thanks to his purchase of the venerable Washington Post back in 2013. He understands that print advertising works.

What had been viewed as a declining property — a legacy newspaper that Bezos bought for $250 million — has been rejuvenated, with investments in reporting staff and creation of digital content that has increased subscriptions. The Post, more than ever, is a true national newspaper, despite having a boss who knew almost nothing about journalism or print when he bought the business. The Post runs some 1,200 articles a day, and features a staff of engineers as well as reporters, editors and photographers.

Will print advertising be part of the Amazon/Whole Foods plan going forward? Who knows? Bezos, after all, knows the value of newspapers.