Amazon.com, 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 .
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.
The site will double as a mini-warehouse to support same-day delivery, returns and order pickups within New York, the
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Amazon declined to comment on the
A store would mark a significant move for an online retailer that has capitalised on its Internet business model and the cost-savings of doing away with a vast physical network.
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 centre.
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The company has also on occasion set up pop-up stores in malls, though those have been rare.