Amazon opens 1st physical clothing store in Los Angeles
Inside Amazon Style (Credit: Amazon)
LOS ANGELES - Amazon’s first-ever physical store for men’s and women’s clothing had its grand opening last week in Los Angeles, as the company aims to "reimagine in-store shopping" with a technology-driven experience through the app.
The flagship store, called Amazon Style, is located at the Americana at Brand in the Los Angeles suburb of Glendale.
"Amazon Style is built around personalization. Our machine learning algorithms produce tailored, real-time recommendations for each customer as they shop," the company previously said of the new store.
Customers can use the Amazon Shopping app to scan an item’s QR code and see available sizes, colors and customer ratings. They can also send items to a fitting room, where a touchscreen allows the customer to browse more styles and request a different size or style that can be delivered to their room "within minutes."
The app also allows customers to send items they want to a pickup counter so they don’t have to walk around holding the potential purchases. The store carries various brands ranging from Champion, Lacoste and Levi’s — to Tommy Hilfiger, Steve Madden, The Drop and Velvet by Graham & Spencer.
"As customers browse the store and scan items that catch their eye, we’ll recommend picks just for them. For an even more tailored experience, customers can share information like their style, fit, and other preferences to receive more refined recommendations," Amazon said of its new store.
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The company said it decided to open a clothing store so customers can continue shopping on its website while offering the benefit of touching and trying on items. The new store offers men’s and women’s clothing, shoes and accessories and will be "frequently updated so customers can discover new items each time they visit."
There are employees at the store, who are there to help customers find items they love, deliver items to the fitting room, and help customers at check out. Payment can be made with a traditional credit card, as well as Amazon’s palm-enabled checkout kiosks via Amazon One that charges the card on file.
Inside Amazon Style (Credit: Amazon)
Amazon Style is the latest of the massive company’s physical stores, which also include cashier-less grocery stores Amazon Go in places like Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco and New York, as well as Amazon Fresh with locations in California, Illinois, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington state and Washington, D.C.
High inflation has squeezed retailers like Amazon, Walmart and Target during the first quarter of 2022. In April, Amazon reported its first quarterly loss since 2015 — stalled by a slowdown in pandemic-induced online shopping as well as other impacts.
Amazon sales boomed during the COVID-19 pandemic as people stuck at home turned online to purchase what they needed. But the growth has slowed as vaccinated Americans feel more comfortable going out. And like many other retailers, Amazon has also been dealing with pressure from inflation and supply-chain issues.
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This story was reported from Cincinnati. The Associated Press contributed.