The stores are reportedly set to launch in California and Ohio first.
Amazon is tightening its chokehold on brick-and-mortar stores. the web retail giant has already contributed to the closing of many department shops. But, in an unsurprising turn of events, Amazon might open up a number of its own.
Amazon’s Retail Takeover Continues
According to a report by The Wall Street Journal, Amazon is gearing up to launch large physical shopping centres that are like department shops. This information comes from a gaggle of anonymous insiders, who told the Journal that Amazon would begin piloting the stores in California and Ohio.
Unlike your typical emporium, which extends across 100,000 square feet, Amazon allegedly chooses a scaled-down size of 30,000 square feet. Even still, the shop will be much larger than several of Amazon’s other physical locations, like its cashier-less Amazon Go stores.
As for what exactly Amazon will sell in its mini department shops, that’s still not confirmed. However, it’s expected to sell goods from popular brands, also as prominently feature Amazon-branded products. With a listing as massive as Amazon’s, shoppers may encounter anything from clothes, furniture, and electronics.
From Modest Book Shops to Mini Department Stores
Amazon has been experimenting with brick-and-mortar locations as far back as 2015. That’s when it opened its first Amazon Books location, with 24 stores across the US.
This, of course, was followed by the ribbon-cutting of Amazon’s grocery stores, Amazon Go, in 2018. And let’s not ditch Amazon 4-Star, the company’s brick-and-mortar store that only sells products rated four stars and above.
Amazon’s stores still aren’t as widespread because the company probably hopes they’d be. Its shops are primarily scattered in large cities, leaving out an enormous portion of rural US.
That said, if Amazon is in a position to crop up in even more locations, the consequences would likely be devasting for retailers. The prospect of Amazon filling the shoes of sinking department shops like Macy’s and JCPenney is quite frightening.
Will Amazon’s Department Stores Succeed?
Almost everyone has shopped at Amazon at one point in their lives, mainly because it’s everything you’ll ever invite in one online store.
If the emporium rumours pan out, Amazon will select its best items to display in-store and give customers the prospect to look at and test products before buying them. This alone is attractive to most shoppers wary of shopping for certain goods online, like clothes.
