The company that many blame in part for the downfall of many large and small retail stores around the world is going to try its hand at the very thing they helped to weaken: retail store chains. Within the next few months, Amazon plans to launch retail store in their home town of Seattle that will focus on their emerging Amazon Exclusives like of books as well as tablets and other e-readers.
This isn’t the first rumor that has circulated about Amazon hitting the brick-and-mortar path and the report is still unconfirmed, but it stays in line with their recent strategies. The eCommerce giant has shown no signs of sitting back as their empire continues to grow. Physical retail locations are the next natural step as they try to get deeper into Apple’s and other competitors’ pockets.
According to Jeff Hughes at Digital Trends, this move would make perfect sense based upon the competition. “With the Kindles becoming increasingly important to Amazon, the company may be shifting to stay competitive with Barnes & Noble and Apple. The Nook takes center stage when walking into B&N stores, with a display area and support that Amazon probably can’t match right now.”
We will watch over the next couple of months to see how this rumor pans out.