Amazon started out as an online bookstore back in the day and has now become the "e-commerce" king, and now that KING offers Prime members FREE next-day shipping on items that cost as low as $1.
Before, to qualify for Amazon Prime fast shipping, these "under $5" items had to be purchased as an "add-on" with other higher priced purchases, but now, they'll be delivered without those restrictions. Yep. Now you'll be able to refill on your toothbrushes, crayons, pens, floss, toothpaste, deodorant, yarn, candy, whatever it is that you'd normally fill up your basket with at a brick-and-mortar checkout aisle and have it at your door tomorrow.
With the vast selection of items that Amazon carries, this could definitely cause a few issues for other big box stores such as Walmart, CVS, Rite Aid, Walgreen's, and Target.
At the end of the day, consumers vote using their minds and wallets. One thing's for certain, companies and brands will be very happy with the increase in sales and distribution for their products. As for the environment and carbon footprint caused by delivery car/truck emissions, maybe the increase in deliveries will balance out with more consumers no longer driving to stores as often. We'll just have to wait and see how this all plays out for local economies.