Amazon closing physical bookstores, shops: report

Amazon said it will close 68 of its physical bookstores and shops in the United States and United Kingdom, Reuters reported. 

In a statement on Wednesday, the company said the latest store closures will vary by location, adding it will apprise its customers of the upcoming changes. 

“We’ve decided to close our Amazon 4-star, Books, and Pop Up stores, and focus more on our Amazon Fresh, Whole Foods Market, Amazon Go, and Amazon Style stores and our Just Walk Out technology,” an Amazon spokesperson told The Hill. “We remain committed to building great, long-term physical retail experiences and technologies, and we’re working closely with our affected employees to help them find new roles within Amazon.”

Amazon said physical retail stores are still an important way for them to reach customers, adding it is working on multiple concepts including a fashion store in Los Angeles, Calif., and cashier-less grocery stores, according to Reuters. 

The Seattle-based company also said it is working to find new roles for employees of the closed stores by placing them at other nearby Amazon-owned outlets — or they can take severance. 

Amazon reducing its retail footprint follows other U.S.-based retailers including Rite Aid, Walgreens and CVS Pharmacy, which previously announced plans to close some stores. 

Amazon, which started out as an online bookstore, helped drive brick-and-mortar book sellers like Borders and Barnes and Noble toward bankruptcy. 

— Updated at 5:02 p.m.