Amazon opens its first "real" bookshop in New York

8 years ago - Published in Finance, Fundamental Analysis

Online retail giant Amazon on Thursday opened its first brick and mortar bookstore in New York, selling a limited range of its highest-rated books and letting customers browse products as in times gone by.

Amazon, which launched as an online bookseller in 1995 but which now sells everything from designer clothes to groceries, bided its time before venturing into the US cultural capital. It launched brick and mortar bookstores in six other cities first, starting in its hometown Seattle in 2015.

“You don’t run a marathon before you run a 5K,” said Jennifer Cast, vice president of Amazon Books. “We wanted some time to learn and we also really wanted the right spot.”

The New York store — a modest 370 square meters (3,983 square feet) compared to the multi-storey premises of rival Barnes and Noble — occupies a prime spot at Columbus Circle opposite Central Park.

The offerings are limited to just 3,000 titles, none of which have received fewer than four out of five stars by Amazon’s online customers, who are invited to post their own reviews on the website.

There is also a “Page Turners” section dedicated to books that — according to Amazon data — customers have devoured in three days or less, and another to preferences of customers in the New York area.

Bricks and mortar retail remains a marginal part of Amazon's business – and that's not likely to change anytime soon, said analyst Tuna Amobi, who follows the company for CFRA Research.

Jennifer Cast, the vice-president of Amazon Books, said the company's "customer-obsessed" focus is driving the real-world expansion.
People have been asking for a place to check out books and test-drive Amazon's tech products, such as the Kindle e-reader, she says. Amazon also has a mountain of data on what people are reading to put to use in stocking the store.

Amazon opened its first bookshop in Seattle in 2015. By the end of the year, it plans to have 13 in the US. It's also expanded its physical footprint on university campuses and is experimenting with grocery and convenience shops.