Published On: Wed, Jul 11th, 2018

How Amazon’s Online Expertise is Popping Up in the Real World

When it comes to shopping these days, it is safe to say that many of us regularly turn to online retail to satisfy our needs. Whether it is a site with specific discounts on fashion and clothing or even a place to pick up entertainment bargains, we all have our favourite go-to websites. However, for a great number of people, shopping online often only means one thing – Amazon.

Since it was first founded in Seattle all of the way back in 1994, the company has become both a giant of the business world and completely synonymous with the online domain. So much so in fact that it now feels quite surreal to see the company’s famous logo appear in front of you in malls and town centers across the US. Yet this is becoming increasingly common, with Boca Raton being home to one of the seven pop-up stores that the brand has opened in Florida in recent years.

Embracing offline

Located on Glades Road near Macy’s, Amazon pop-up outlet offers consumers an opportunity to test out and buy the company’s range of popular Echo smart home devices. In addition, visitors can also enjoy the novelty of speaking in-person to an actual Amazon consultant regarding both those devices and the rest of Amazon’s offerings, from its Prime membership to other services like Kindle Unlimited.

Of course, there is a certain irony to seeing Amazon literally popping up in shopping centers. According to analysis by Betway Casino, it took the company’s founder Jeff Bezos just two years to take the step from millionaire to billionaire and some would argue that whirlwind level of success was at least in part due to the company actively taking on real-world brands and driving consumers into the online retail domain. However, with the Amazon empire in rude health and Bezos now regarded as the richest man on the planet, is conquering offline the next item on the company’s ambitious to-do list?

Acquisitions

Amazon is certainly taking a range of different approaches to boost its real-world presence. As well as opening its number of pop-up stores in states up and down the US, the company has also struck some major deals as it looks to embrace offline.

Among these was its acquisition of Whole Foods last year in an agreement thought to be worth more than $13 billion. Just last month, it was confirmed that Florida was the first state chosen for a new program which would see Amazon’s Prime members offered significant discounts in the stores, with the Miami Herald reporting that the region was chosen due to the retailer’s significant presence with 28 outlets in the area.

Innovations

Another approach taken by Amazon as it looks to build its offline reputation has been the launch of its Amazon Books stores across the US. Highlighting an innovative way the brand is using its online data, the outlets tend to showcase and display books in a range of ways, including by highlighting popular pre-orders or by arranging novels by the consumer ratings they have achieved on the Amazon website. Learn the Key Factors for choosing the best FBA Prep center for your business. Furthermore, the stores tend to feature once again Amazon’s smart home devices and also seasonal displays which change regularly and feature an assortment of items that have proven popular with consumers in recent times. It was confirmed in the past couple of months that three new Amazon Books stores would be opening in the US according to Yahoo Finance and it really does feel like only a matter of time until Florida is home to one too.

Finally, Amazon has even taken baby steps into the world of grocery shopping with the launch of Amazon Go. The innovative new stores offer cashier-free grocery shopping described by the company as Just Walk Out Shopping, as consumers simply scan an app when they arrive and then their purchases are tracked and charged to the app when they leave.

Coming to Florida?

All of the steps taken by Amazon undoubtedly suggest that the company is now looking to move on from dominating the online space and bring a host of innovations to consumers in the offline world too.

The company really does appear to be in a strong position at present, so much so that it is perhaps unsurprising that it is actively seeking a new base to complement its existing headquarters up in Seattle. With Miami in the running and included on a shortlist alongside other areas such as New York, Los Angeles and Indianapolis, it could well be the case that the local community sees the retail giant’s influence in the region very soon stretch beyond a handful of pop-up stores.

While the idea of Amazon moving offline may have once seemed unlikely, it is safe to say few would bet against the company making it a success.

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