But this decision also comes at a time when Amazon retail workers had begun to organize - though in this case, at an Amazon Fresh grocery. The decision to exit so much of its brick-and-mortar business follows a couple of years that have made in-person retail more challenging for everyone, as the COVID pandemic sent more consumers online as foot traffic to local stores declined. It also said it was working to find new roles for employees impacted, when possible, or offer them severance. The company told Reuters it will alert shoppers to the upcoming closures through in-store signage, as the actual closing dates may vary by location. And Amazon has been testing its Just Walk Out cashierless shopping technology at a growing number of Amazon Go convenience stores, which weren’t a part of this planned shutdown. In later years, Amazon’s retail footprint expanded to include Whole Foods, with the 2017 $13.7 billion acquisition of the grocer, plus its own Amazon Fresh grocery stores. The stores didn’t just provide a place for customers to interact with Amazon merchandise in real life, including its hardware devices, they also served as a convenient spot to pick up merchandise bought online or make returns. states like Arizona, California, Colorado, D.C., Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregan, Tennessee, Texas and, of course, its home state of Washington.

The retailer, which began its life as an online bookseller, launched its first physical bookstore in Seattle back in 2015, then steadily expanded its brick-and-mortar footprint to include more locations across the U.S.

This includes its Amazon Books bookstores, its pop-up shops in various markets and its 4-star stores, where customers could shop popular and highly rated products across. Amazon’s physical retail business is suffering a major blow as the company today confirmed to Reuters it will close 68 brick-and-mortar retail stores across the U.S.

Amazon bookstore