Amazon may have made a name for itself in online retail, but it’s not a company scared of physical stores, and discount retail locations were being considered before the pandemic hit.
As Bloomberg reports, two people familiar with the plans have stated Amazon was considering opening a new type of retail store to sit alongside the existing range of Amazon Go, Fresh, Books, 4-star, Pop- Up, and Whole Foods. This one would focus on selling unsold inventory from Amazon’s electronics, home goods, toys, kitchen, and baby products ranges, but with steep discounts attached. The idea being, it’s better to sell than destroy this stock.
Amazon already offers discounted products online through Amazon Outlet and Amazon Warehouse, with used goods also being sold at prices that reflect their condition. The discount retail stores had the potential to offer those same items either through permanent new retail locations or pop-up kiosks in malls or parking lots.
The idea was shelved last year when the pandemic struck, with the focus turning to existing retail stores and Fresh grocery locations in particular. That’s not to say a chain of Amazon-branded discount retail stores won’t happen in the future, but it looks unlikely to be revisited until the US is much closer to be being back to “normal.” And if you’re wondering what these stores would look like, apparently they’d follow a similar format to the existing 4-star locations.
