Amazon to take on Big Apple with brick-and-mortar retail store

Source: thetodayonline.com --- Sunday, October 12, 2014 Jeff Bezos is moving into brick-and-mortar retail. Photo: Flickr First of all Microsoft announces plans for a flagship Fifth Avenue Store to compete with Apple 's iconic glass cube, and now Amazon apparently wants to get in on the brick-and-mortar game, too. According to the Wall Street Journal , Amazon plans to open its first physical retail store in time for Christmas on Manhattan's 34th Street. While that might seem counter-intuitive for a company which essentially dealt the death knell to many brick-and-mortar stores, it's designed to be an extension of the online experience — offering customers the ability to pick up orders placed online , or return and exchange products. The store itself is located in a 12-story building, which will function much like a miniature Amazon warehouse. Although it's certainly a different retail approach to the one employed by Apple , it nonetheless is another example of the two companies competing over similar turf. In recent years Amazon and Apple have taken on one another in the smartphone sector (handily won by Apple ) and the e-book arena (victory: Amazon). Now it looks like they're set to compete over the retail experience in New York, with Amazon's outlet being within striking distance of several notable Apple Stores. Let the battle commence! Luke Dormehl is a UK-based journalist and author, with a background working in documentary film for Channel 4 and the BBC. He is the author of The Fo ...

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