AmazonShuts Fresh/Go Stores, Bets Big on Whole Foods Expansion
The era of Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go is over. After a decade of experimentation, the e-commerce giant is closing all 72 of its grocery locations. Amazon’s push into branded retail failed to deliver a distinctive customer experience with a scalable economic model, per The Wall Street Journal.
Amazon Fresh offered a mid-market selection but struggled to win customers despite cheaper prices and high-tech carts. Amazon Go’s checkout-free stores never scaled, with the fleet shrinking by more than half since 2023.
Yet Amazon physical retail isn’t dead. The closures coincide with approval for its largest-ever store in Illinois—a bold bet that bigger stores trump smaller, tech-heavy experiments. Amazon shifts focus to Whole Foods, planning over 100 new locations.
The failure reveals a hard lesson: convenience alone isn’t enough. Success may lie in amplifying Whole Foods’ premium appeal at scale.
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