These Amazon stores will be a visual aid of sorts
First came Amazon Books, now we’re waiting for the arrival of Amazon Go – the e-commerce giant’s cashier-less convenience store – might we see an Amazon Furniture in the near future? According to New York Times, the internet titan is toying with the idea of brick-and-mortar furniture and appliance stores, big ticket items that users are often reluctant to buy online, with an augmented reality (AR) twist.
AR For Amazon
Through the use of AR, these Amazon stores will be a visual aid of sorts, allowing the consumer to visualize the item in their homes, which would hopefully translate to higher sales figures than traditional brick-and-mortar stores. Amazon’s possible utilization of AR is no shocker – industry watchers have long expected AR to start playing a bigger role in traditional retail environments, be it inside a dressing room or on the sales floor.
The company is also reportedly looking into electronic stores as well, the concept of which would be in the vein of Apple’s ubiquitous stores. While Amazon does sell its tech-related items in their bookshops, these electronic stores would carry a “heavy emphasis” on Amazon branded devices and services like the Echo home speaker and their Prime Video streaming service, which would put them head-to-head against its tech rivals.
Just ‘Floating Concepts’
The report, however, did point out that these are just floating concepts at the moment. Amazon, like most other tech companies, mull over many outlandish and fantastical ideas that rarely see the light of day in the end. Drew Herdener, an Amazon spokesman, while refusing to speak on these rumours, said that “[they] are always thinking about new ways to serve customers, but thinking is different than planning.”
Still, for a company that was founded on the basis that online shopping would do away with the need for physical stores, Amazon’s philosophy has slowly been shifting towards creating an omni-channel shopping experience. It’s clear that consumers still have a need to view and feel products in person, a fact that’s even present in Singapore, and online retailers are quickly moving to address that need.
