Amazon Stores In London? Online Retailer Opening Shops In UK

After helping to kill off brick-and-mortar bookstores, Amazon is now bringing them back -- under its own name. The online retailer is reportedly planning to open stores in the UK where customers can pick up purchases they make on the website, rather than wait at home for deliveries. According to the Times of London:

One source familiar with Amazon's proposals said: "When Amazon was just selling books and CDs that fitted easily through the letterbox it was fine to be a web-only business, but now it has branched out into everything from children's bikes to electricals it believes it could boost sales by having stores that offer a collection point for shoppers.

Comments

[norepublicanleftbehind]

02:11 PM on 12/08/2009

Good for the jobs but is it going to raise their prices?

[anotherscott]

07:58 PM on 12/07/2009

So many comments here talking about how terrible it would be for amazon to do this, especially in their state... Did no one notice the article is about the U.K.? It sounds like they don't have the kind of reliable USPS/UPS deliveries we have here, so this can address a problem specific to that market.

[invest in jobs]

10:30 AM on 12/07/2009

I understand that in a deep recession such as the one we we (and still are) in it is appropriate to increase govt spending to get the economy going again, but the problem is so little of that money has actually helped average people who are struggling - who who have been fired or or working for reduced pay or reduced hours. \

good articles: http://financeopinionss.blogspot.com
We're still in recession as far as I;m concerned. Screw GDP. Until there's jobs and health care it;s a recession.

[jalowe1957]

08:28 AM on 12/07/2009

If Amazon.com had any business sense, or even any common sense, they would allow Americans to buy MP3 music downloads from its British site and vice versa.

[CologneCitizen]

03:18 AM on 12/07/2009

I live in Germany and sometimes order from Amazon.uk.

With the low pound to the Euro, cd's dvd's, watches, books, almost anything is often a steal even with a bit of freight on top. The scheduled arrival dates are always correct and DHL delivers on time, perfect.

[NQ Logic]

09:21 PM on 12/06/2009

NQ Logic recommends reading about Amazon's new strategy in the book publishing business and its Kindle device at www.nqlogic.com

[eriana]

08:47 PM on 12/06/2009

Congratulation for opening Amazon in UK. How about Amazon management ! Do you plan to open Amazon in Asia Country, as Singapore, Kualalumpur even Indonesia. We are customer from Asia, is too long time to receive your postal and spend a lot of money for postal when shoping in Amazon.

Warm Regards
Erny Setyawati
http://www.baliglobalmarket.com

[Edward Lucie-Smith]

02:37 PM on 12/06/2009

The problem here in the UK is frequent recent strikes in the postal service. Another problem is the extreme inefficiency of courier companies. I live in a large London apartment block (with concierge) and DHL *never* manage to get a delivery right. FedEx are almost as bad. Amazon.co.uk are desperately trying to solve a problem that is clearly costing them customers. They have my sympathy. If they open stores that are collection points I'll be grateful and use Amazon more often. For many items now they're not worth the hassle.

[01202009]

02:30 PM on 12/06/2009

Huge mistake. I buy from Amazon because of the convenience of having stuff dropped at my door. I have learned that their prices are no better and sometimes higher than other online stores so I’ve started looking around. If I have to go out to pick something up in a store I might just as well go to a real store where I can see the stuff before I pay for it.

What’s the point of driving to pick up a package and then driving back again if it isn’t what I wanted? Big mistake for the customer. Big mistake for the company because of the overhead.

[ynp7]

02:35 PM on 12/06/2009

It's optional, did you even read the story? Really, it's only two paragraphs, that can't be too difficult, can it?

[Prakosh]

03:30 PM on 12/06/2009

Why do you think twitter is so popular--sometimes even a sentence can be too difficult!

[01202009]

04:14 PM on 12/06/2009

Actually, ynp7, I did read the entire article in the Times and it's more than two paragraphs. Amazon is doing this (perhaps) to boost sales and I don't think it will. I think it will tarnish the brand by making it just like everybody else. That's my opinion.

You might be a little more gracious when you're snipping away at someone's post. Did you even read the WHOLE story?

[CDMelty]

02:12 PM on 12/06/2009

I ordered my husband a saw for Xmas from sears.com and paid no shipping by having it delivered to a nearby store. I got the black friday price without the crowds. I do site-to-store on Walmart.com all the time to avoid shipping and handling fees. If amazon opened a store near me and didn't charge shipping, I'd buy much larger, heavier, stuff there.

[JimBozo]

02:43 PM on 12/06/2009

Sears has had this system in place at least since the '60s, with "Catalog Stores". The store didn't stock merchandise in the traditional Department Store way. Instead, the customer would order through the catalog, either at the store or from home, then pick it up when the merchandise came in.
They also had microfilm viewers at the Catalog Store which could be used to place orders. I remember going to the Catalog Store and scrolling through the microfilm parts catalog to order specific parts for my Sears Moped. Online ordering would have been more convenient, of course; but at the time, this was a great way of shopping for stuff not normally stocked in the normal Sears stores.

[LatteLiberals]

02:05 PM on 12/06/2009

Amazon is copying the model of a UK store Argos. Argos already allows you to pre-order items online and pick them up in their store. I'm surprised Amazon isn't copying this model in the US. Poor Argos will be put under me thinks.

[beherenow54]

02:02 PM on 12/06/2009

My whole point of Amazon is that I don't have to to out to pick anything up; it's shipped right to my door. And since it's strictly online I don't have to pay sales tax on it, which makes it a better bargain, in some cases, even with shipping costs. Of course, there are many items with free shipping. Opening an actual store negates all of those reasons to shop at Amazon.

[Miguel TX]

02:43 PM on 12/06/2009

You are right, and I just want to add to that. I'm a heavy Amazon user and save hundreds of dollars on not paying for sales tax precisely because they don't have a brick-and-mortar (store, office, or warehouse) in my state and are therefore exempt. Taxes here in my state are 8.25%. I use an Amazon card, which gives me "effectively" 3% back on purchases via Amazon gift cards. I shell out the yearly $79 annual Prime free for free 2-day shipping on all Amazon "prime" items.

It's the best thing, it is like getting 11.25% off of items and I don't have to spend my precious time and waste expensive gas to go hunting all over town for a single item, only to find out it was cheaper on-line. The annual prime fee probably saves me more in gas and mileage for brick-and-mortar shopping when I think about it.

I imagine a future where you go into a store that physically sells nothing. You look around and touch and feel everything, then place your order for what you like and have it delivered or for pick up. But not yet Amazon! I have my trusty Amazon iPhone app, that I use when I go to other stores to check prices on items that catch my eye, and it it's not 11.25% cheaper in the store, then I don't buy it there, I go with Amazon.

[Mahi Joe]

01:45 PM on 12/06/2009

If Amazon opens a store in Illinois that would mean I would have to pay the highest State tax on merchandise I purchase from them. They would lose all my business.

[ynp7]

02:38 PM on 12/06/2009

Keep whining, we already pay 9.5% sales tax on Amazon purchases here in Seattle. And you know what, a lot of the time their prices are STILL cheaper than shopping elsewhere.

[Mahi Joe]

05:14 PM on 12/06/2009

Whining? Guess again. The only appeal Amazon had was the no tax and free shipping over $25. Amazon cheaper? Look around the stores lately. Many deals to be found. The only one who will suffer will be you in WA when Amazon loses sales and pays less taxes and I can bet you will be the one actually whining.

[TomCinIllinois]

02:42 PM on 12/06/2009

I have been surprised that Amazon has avoided having to collect Illinois Sales Tax in the past. Until recently, they had an arrangement with borders.com that I would have thought would be enough to require collection of tax.

With the proliferation of UPS and Fedex/Kinko stores, it is surprising that an on-line retailer like Amazon has not made a formal arrangement to turn one of those chains into virtual retail outlets, where one can order on-line, pay and later pick up orders, and the outlet operator can pocket the freight fee plus a little more.

[tierone]

01:44 PM on 12/06/2009

We'll see if it turns out better than Gateway's foray into brick-and-mortar. . .

[bulfinch]

01:36 PM on 12/06/2009

Big mistake is right. I use Amazon Prime and never need to go to a store or "pickup point".

Hope it doesn't work in UK.

[LatteLiberals]

02:05 PM on 12/06/2009

It already works. The store is called Argos.