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The online retail giant, which currently manages a handful of small Amazon-branded stores, is looking to expand its offline shopping options is thinking bigger, with department store plans reportedly in the works.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon is looking to open locations smaller than traditional department stores, following the playbook set forth by Aldi and Trader Joe’s, with a heavy emphasis on private-label goods from Amazon.
If the plan comes to fruition, Amazon would open up locations under 100,000-square-feet in some of the biggest cities in the US, to help the company “extend its reach in sales of clothing, household items, electronics, and other areas.”
The first stores are planned for Ohio and California, which will be approximately 30,000-square-feet, with Amazon’s private-label products to be featured front and center in the new locations, alongside wares from other “top consumer brands.”
Reportedly, the new focus will be on garnering a larger share of online ad revenue, which is currently dominated by Facebook and Google, while providing real-world retail data to the digital company.
With a brick-and-mortar shop set up, Amazon will also be able to collect additional data regarding potential customers, even if no purchases are made. The company will be able to track which aisles consumers are browsing, what is picked up from a shelf, and whether purchases were influenced by an ad seen on the Amazon website.
According to reports, Amazon is looking to compete and get a larger slice of the in-store purchase pie from a group that includes Target, Walmart, and CVS.
The Wall Street Journal report states that Amazon is seeking new customers and the latest venture is an effort to dominate new retail categories with physical stores stocked with the company’s featured items.
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