Amazon To Open First Brick-And-Mortar Store, Will Offer Same-Day Delivery

When it comes to Amazon and the moves that it is making right now, some say it is beyond far-fetched and others are saying it is sheer determination to be the retailer that perfects same-day delivery. It has gone to great lengths to get to the plateau that the company is at now and from Amazon's recent announcement, the company is only getting better.

Amazon has announced the opening of its very first brick-and-mortar store location. The Wall Street Journal reported that the retailer will be opening a store location right in the heart of New York City. The outlet is said to be able to provide Amazon with the face-to-face experience that only traditional retailers have. This is the first step in this direction by the e-retailer in its 20-year history. A company that has been web-based for such a considerable amount of years is officially a physical store retailer as well.

Amazon’s location will be at 7 West 34th Street, which is across from the Empire State Building in Midtown. It will operate as a mini-warehouse and have limited inventory for same-day delivery within New York, exchanges, product returns, and pickups of online orders. The primary purpose for the Manhattan location is a source for customers to pick up their online orders. It will also serve as a distribution point for a same-day courier like A-1 Express to pick up and delivery items. The article stated eventually this warehouse will feature Amazon devices like Kindle e-readers, Fire smartphones and Fire TV set-top boxes.

One interesting insight on Amazon's site opening is it is right before the holiday season. Forecasting shows that this year's shopping number in the retail market will be big and Amazon is gearing up for it. The location is on the same street as Macy's New York flagship store. It is probably no coincidence, as Macy's has recently announced its' entry into the same-day delivery market by launching the service in several major US cites.

Amazon already announced a few months ago its' same-day delivery service expanstion into 6 more major US cities. The e-retailer rolled out the service in New York City, Dallas, Baltimore, Indianapolis, Washington DC and Philadelphia. Amazon was already offering same-day delivery Los Angeles, Seattle, Phoenix, and Indianapolis. Amazon then launched a wider range of same-day delivery in the New York City area. Then, last month the retail giant expanded the service into Atlanta and its' surrounding cities, such as Marietta, Kennesaw, Smyrna, and more. Amazon definitely has something far greater than experts are aware of and only time will tell.

Amazon's Vice president of Amazon Prime, Greg Greeley, stated before to Yahoo, "Imagine how much time you will save now that you can get sunscreen, memory cards, toothpaste, hit movies, text books and HDMI cables all delivered to your home in hours, seven days a week, in one order from Amazon. New convenient pricing also allows Prime members to fill up their same-day shopping cart with everything they may need for one low price. With more than a million eligible items, we aim to offer the largest same-day selection at the lowest price.” This new site is going to play a part in Amazon's goal.

The competition is going to have to go to the next level to beat Amazon at this game. Some e-retailers are opting to partner with a same-day courier like A-1 Express to implement a delivery system that fits their business model. There is no question that the New York courier has all of the components, including a nationwide footprint, to assist any web-based or physical store retailer in offering delivering their products the same day. Amazon utilizes its' own fleet, however, retailers can turn to A-1 Express in this race against Amazon.

References: 8.6.14, Yahoo Finances, Amazon Same-Day Delivery Expanding - “Get It Today” Available in Six More Cities