Back in 2009,
rumors began to surface that Amazon was planning to enter the retail store market in the United Kingdom. However, a few days after the
Sunday Times (via
Mashable) report came out, an Amazon official confirmed that they were not opening any retail stores.
Nearly three years later, the rumors are surfacing again. The
Good E-Reader blog reported Saturday that Amazon sources told them that the company is starting to open a retail store based in Seattle within the next few months.
This latest endeavour by Amazon is to test the retail market and find out if there is any profitability. Utilizing small boutiques, Amazon would sell their e-readers, tablets, tech accessories and books from their line of Amazon Exclusives.
Amazon, whose headquarters is already based in Seattle, told the outlet that they do not plan to establish a gigantic store with thousands of square feet. The new store would allow customers to physically purchase books and sample ebooks with the store’s Wi-Fi.
Since the company founded a publishing division where writers write exclusively for the company, competitors, such as Barnes and Noble and Books-A-Million, have stated openly that they
will not sell books published by Amazon.
“This is exciting news and Amazon in a great position to make a strong go out of their retail endeavors. They are starting out local and small mainly to test the waters with the new store, but also the figure out how they’re going to avoid paying massive taxes,” reported Editor in Chief of the Good E-Reader, Michael Kozlowski.
“In the last few years, there has been a huge tax debate because Amazon sells things online and only pays State taxes if they have a distribution center within a particular location. Having a physical store means the company will have to start paying more taxes and they are currently working out the logistics and tax loopholes before they launch.”
CBS News and
Forbes are the latest outlets to report the blog’s news.
