The social shopping program Amigos is a success - but meets with criticism
Migros is pleased with the positive development of the pioneering Amigos project. Trade unions, on the other hand, sharply criticize the shopping app and speak of an «Uber of the retail trade».
Migros is breaking new ground with Amigos. The retailer calls the principle of the app, which provides shopping services, "social shopping". The idea: you can have your purchases delivered to your home by a "delivery person" at the click of a mouse. This person receives CHF 7.90 for one bag and CHF 2 for each additional bag. Anyone who registers as a delivery person can accept orders at will - whoever accepts first wins the contract.
How the SonntagsZeitung reported, the launched just under a year ago project is going well. Several thousand bringers are said to have already registered. However, Migros is keeping the exact figures under wraps.
However, the project, which has a pioneering character in Europe, is not only met with enthusiasm. Trade unions have sharply criticized Migros. The accusation is that the retailer is saving on the delivery service, which employs and pays people correctly. Philipp Zimmermann from Unia, for example, describes Amigos as "a kind of Uber of the retail trade". "Migros is acting as if the suppliers are not working, but simply having fun shopping. That's absurd," Zimmermann criticized to the SonntagsZeitung. Marco Geu from the Syna trade union also speaks of "starvation wages" and compares Amigos with Amazon or Uber business models, which create "precarious working conditions".
Migros rejects the accusations. The deliverers are not primarily interested in money, but in meeting the customers and making them happy. The compensation should not be seen as a wage, but as pocket money, says spokesman Patrick Stöpper to the newspaper. The company draws these conclusions from viewing the profile pictures and from conversations with the users.
Migros is considering expanding the service. After the test phase ends soon, new areas could be added or Amigos could be made available in the Group's other online stores.
The consumer is happy: Amigos is cheaper than the official Migros delivery service LeShop. There is no minimum order value and only half the cost is charged to the end customer for orders over CHF 160.
