Last year, Amazon announced bold plans to expand its physical store footprint, announcing plans to open over 3,000 Amazon Go stores across North America – and in the UK. But why is a company, whose success has been built in the digital realm, joining the world of brick and mortar? To answer this, I think we must look at what Amazon does best, and where their success stems from. Yes, they are first and foremost an online retailer, but that isn’t what separates them from the rest. After all, there are millions of online retailers. What makes Amazon so successful isn’t the online marketplace: it’s Jeff Bezos’ obsession with how to improve the customer experience.

Amazon may well be the king of retail and marketplace disruption. And that is exactly what they are planning to do in brick and mortar form – disrupt. See, many people have sparked fears of the end of physical stores, and unfortunately, we are seeing more and more close every day. But delve a little deeper and you will find that physical stores aren’t the problem, it’s their business model. Many legacy retailers that have failed, also failed to rethink their strategy. Take Toys R’ Us for example, their ‘product’ was a huge warehouse stocked floor to ceiling high with toys – but where was the experience? The stores felt cold, overwhelming and lacked any real unique selling proposition since online retail took off. They were the toy store that had it all – but when you can get everything online with only one click from the comfort of your own home, and often cheaper, why venture out?

Amazon has been in the brick and mortar space since 2015, starting with Amazon Books, which allows customers to browse a curated selection of books while also acts to attract more book publishers by having physical stores. Since then, it bought Whole Foods supermarket chain with more than 500 stores which exclusively sells products free from artificial colours, flavours, preservatives, sweeteners and hydrogenated fats. With Amazon Go, the supermarket with the world’s most advanced shopping technology, Amazon is looking at expanding at a huge rate over the next three years. A store that takes away the pain of queuing and paying.

Simply scan your mobile as you enter the store, take what you want, walk out. Their relentless drive for innovation and thinking differently sets them apart. It has been reported that Amazon has seen an increase in online sales in areas that have a physical brick-and-mortar Amazon presence; hosting an additional avenue in pushing customer awareness. Amazon’s drive for innovation and disruption isn’t for nothing; in an interview, Jeff Bezos said that of their 452 annual targets last year, 360 related to the customer experience. Again, Amazon’s obsession is all about how to improve the customer experience in order to build trust and loyalty.

Where is the place to deliver better experience? Physical shops. Consumers only want the best quality at the best price, the most efficient channel would be via the digital channel. But this is not 100% true. Why? Because consumers are willing to go to the shop if they enjoy the experience.

So, Amazon is opening a wide range of physical stores, Business Insider recently highlighted more new ventures:

• Amazon 4-star – a store that is home to products rated 4 stars and above on Amazon.com.
• Pop-up stores – Amazon uses pop-up stores in malls and shopping centres to showcase products and devices to customers. In October, Amazon set up an Amazon Fashion pop-up in the heart of London. It acted as a venue to host events from denim customisation with Pepe Jeans, live music, beauty trend talks with Vogue’s Jessica Diner, and even Yoga sessions with Deliciously Ella founder Ella Mills.

It is evident that the king of online retail is hugely optimistic about the future of physical retail. Where convenience and experience is key, omni-channel shopping is driving the consumers of today and tomorrow. Physical retail is entering a transformation period of exciting change and growth. You only need to take a walk in your local town centre on a weekend to know that consumers still enjoy going out of their home to buy stuff, the famous “retail therapy”.

But what they want now more than ever, is experience. Technology is the driving force of change, but one thing’s for sure: for the time being, physical retail is not just here to stay, but is set to thrive. Companies like Toys R’ Us, and recently SEARS, failed to implement the changes needed to keep consumers interested, but Amazon isn’t the only company moving from clicks to bricks. Other companies are emerging from the network to form a new way of shopping. In China, the online giant Alibaba is way ahead of Amazon with its Hema stores, by next month they will have opened over 100 supermarkets. But the list of online retailers going physical is vast. Retailers including Warby Parker, Bonobos and M.Gemini are also following suit, because they know that the best place to deliver customer experience is the physical space. This is where face to face human interaction can build trust, promote brand values and deliver the customer loyalty that is the lifeblood of successful retail.

As the trend continues, who will be next? Will Netflix open a Cinema?