Amazon is rethinking its retail ambitions after years of growth. The firm informed Reuters it was closing all 68 of its bodily bookstores, pop-up areas and 4-star outlets within the US and UK. The firm maintained in a statement to the New York Times that in-person retail was nonetheless necessary and that it could concentrate on its cashierless Just Walk Out tech, its grocery shops and its just lately introduced Los Angeles clothes retailer.
Closure dates will fluctuate relying on the shop. Workers at affected areas could obtain jobs at close by Amazon outlets, the corporate stated.
The firm opened its first bodily bookstore in November 2015, and its first 4-star outlet in September 2018. Both represented experiments in combining Amazon’s on-line buying information with the retail world — the in-store choice mirrored what was well-liked or more likely to promote. It’s not sure how nicely they fared in observe, however it’s secure to say they weren’t as disruptive as Amazon’s internet-based e-book gross sales.
Not that Amazon is nervous. The firm continues to be opening extra cashier-free Go shops, and third events like Starbucks and Sainsbury’s are testing Just Walk Out. It additionally has loads of Whole Foods areas, and in 2020 opened its first Amazon Fresh grocery retailer. This is extra of a shift in technique than a retreat, even when it suggests a few of Amazon’s initiatives are extra profitable than others.
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