Amazon.com Inc , the online juggernaut whose rapid expansion helped derail many a brick-and-mortar retail chain, may soon open its first physical store, at a prime site in Midtown Manhattan, according to The Wall Street Journal.<\/p>\n
Amazon plans to open its first full-fledged store across from the Empire State Building, at 7 West 34th Street, the Journal reported. The area, which is also near Macy’s flagship store, is one of the city’s most heavily trafficked zones.<\/p>\n
The site will double as a mini-warehouse to support same-day delivery, returns and order pickups within New York, the Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.<\/p>\n
The store, which is expected to open in time for the holiday shopping season, may also display Amazon’s proprietary products, such as its Kindle line of e-readers and tablets, Fire smartphones and video-streaming boxes. If the store takes off, Amazon may expand to other cities, the Journal reported.<\/p>\n
Amazon declined to comment on the Journal’s report.<\/p>\n
A store would mark a significant move for an online retailer that has capitalized on its Internet business model and the cost-savings of doing away with a vast physical network.<\/p>\n
In recent years however, Chief Executive Jeff Bezos has led a number of initiatives that have mandated a physical presence in cities: lockers that temporarily hold customer purchases, for example, and a rapid expansion of grocery and same-day delivery that has often meant maintaining some sort of local distribution center.<\/p>\n
The company has also on occasion set up pop-up stores in malls, though those have been rare.<\/p>\n
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