Investors undertaking analysis of a company or industry will regularly look to other countries to gage the relative profitability of a domestic operation.
Right now investors in two of Australia's leading retailers, Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) and Woolworths Limited (ASX: WOW), could be well advised to take a look at the significant structural changes occurring in the US grocery market.
According to a report by Australian Food News, Wal-Mart has recently entered the fray to take on Amazon and Google in the online grocery shopping segment.
The move towards online shopping and home delivery of fast-moving consumer goods, fresh and perishable produce is a major threat to established bricks-and-mortar players.
While in the past, investors have speculated on whether Amazon has plans to set-up shop in Australia, ultimately it doesn't matter whether Amazon does or not – someone will!
At some point, most likely in the not-too-distant future, a cashed-up online-only competitor will attempt to take market share from Coles and Woolworths, just as Aldi has done with its bricks-and-mortar offering.
With Woolworths' share price at just $22 many investors are sniffing around to determine if there is value at these levels. While many investors will consider what the ultimate effect of Aldi's store roll-out will be on margins for both Woolworths and Coles, it could be that a new online-only competitor might be an even bigger threat to the future profitability of Australia's supermarket incumbents.