Amazon is closing the majority of its physical stores, the company announced today, with all 68 of its Amazon Books, Amazon 4-Star, and Amazon Pop Up locations across the United States and the United Kingdom set to close as the company refocuses on its grocery and fashion stores, according to Reuters.
When the first Amazon Books branch opened in Seattle in 2015, it was one of the largest online storefront’s first physical retail experiences. Amazon has since expanded to 24 bookshops across the United States, all of which are presently scheduled to close.
In 2018, the business expanded its retail operations with Amazon 4-Star, a more broadly focused store that sold products with four-star or better ratings handpicked from Amazon’s digital storefront, as well as — of course — Amazon’s own first-party products (including Echo, Kindle, and Fire TV devices).
Amazon Pop Up stores, on the other hand, were smaller, more focused mall experiences that featured a rotating selection of themed merchandise (March is a printer collaboration with Brother, for example).
However, all of Amazon’s retail stores served as a physical touchpoint for returning Amazon purchases, as well as giving discounted prices and incentives to Amazon Prime customers.
The announcement isn’t wholly surprising: compared to Amazon’s vast online operations, its retail ambitions have largely felt like small-scale tryouts. Furthermore, according to CNBC, the company’s physical shops have performed considerably worse than its web commerce in recent years.
Amazon isn’t giving up on physical stores entirely. Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods food stores, as well as Amazon Go convenience stores, will continue to operate (with their unique cashier-less model). Amazon’s experimental “Amazon Style” clothes store is still open for business.
According to CNBC, Amazon’s retail locations, including Whole Foods and Fresh locations, reported lower sales in 2021 than in 2018, owing to the global pandemic and subsequent lockdowns. Nonetheless, the business “remains committed to delivering exceptional, long-term physical retail experiences and technologies,” according to an Amazon spokeswoman in an email to PCMag.
The Amazon Style shop, which is set to open later this year in The Americana at Brand mall in California, was recently unveiled by the firm. Meanwhile, Amazon Go, Amazon Fresh, and Whole Foods Market will remain open as the company promotes cashier-less technology.
