Amazon announced it is closing all of its physical Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh stores, a major pivot in its brick-and-mortar retail strategy. The decision impacts all 57 Fresh supermarkets and 15 Go convenience stores nationwide. The company stated that after years of experimentation, the formats failed to deliver a "truly distinctive customer experience with the right economic model needed for large-scale expansion."
This move signals a strategic consolidation around its more successful grocery assets. Amazon will now intensify its focus on expanding its Whole Foods Market subsidiary, with plans to open more than 100 new stores in the coming years. The company will also convert some of the closed Fresh and Go locations into Whole Foods stores while simultaneously accelerating investment in its online, same-day grocery delivery services.