Remember the big media fuss Amazon made over the launch of its AI/automated, checkout-free grocery stores? We also noted, later, that the concept had some troubling issues… Now, Amazon is closing its ‘GO’ and ‘Fresh’ convenience stores…
‘Just Walk Out’ (JWO) payment technology turned checkout lines into express lanes
at Amazon GO stores. But the overall concept didn’t grab shoppers…
Amazon says its JWO technology is still in use at 360 third-party locations in five counties, including hospital cafeterias and staff break rooms. But the system doesn’t seem to resonate with conven-ience store shoppers.
Go gone…
“After a careful evaluation of the business and how we can best serve customers,” Amazon shares in a news release, “we’ve made the difficult decision to close our Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh physical stores, convert-ing various locations into Whole Foods Market stores. Customers can continue to shop Amazon Fresh online in available areas for fast and convenient delivery.”
‘Prioritizing our investments’
Meanwhile, the online giant is focusing on its full-sized Whole Foods Market (WFM) stores. “Whole Foods Mark-et, a pioneer and leader in natural and organic foods, has seen strong success since our 2017 acquisition, with over 40% sales growth and expansion to more than 550 locations.”
WFM stores have enjoyed, “record-breaking customer traffic and year-over-year comparable store growth that is outpacing the broader industry.” Accordingly, Amazon plans to open more than 100 new Whole Foods Market stores over the next few years. And that may just be the beginning of an even larger expansion once the company has developed, “a truly distinctive customer experience with the right economic model needed for large-scale expansion.”
Customers are increasingly choosing Whole Foods Market (WFM) for both everyday shopping and special occasions, as demonstrated by record-breaking customer traffic and year-over-year compar-able store growth that is outpacing the broader industry. Accelerating this growth, we are now plan-ning to invest in opening more than 100 new Whole Foods Market stores over the next few years.
Amazon will also be focusing more on its delivery services, which are supported by its core-business distribution network. It plans to expand Same-Day Delivery of fresh groceries to ‘many more com-munities’ in 2026.
What’s next?
Amazon is planning to convert its GO and Fresh locations to new WFM stores. Smaller stores will probably become Whole Foods Market Daily Shops. “This smaller store format is redefining conven-ience and the neighbourhood grocery shopping experience with a curated selection of grab-and-go meals, coffee, and everyday essentials.”
My take
Amazon is soft-selling its abandonment of its Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh stores, suggesting they were test concepts all along. “Throughout our operation of these stores, we’ve gathered valuable insights about what matters to customers. For example, our Amazon Go locations served as inno-vation hubs...”
That may be so. But they never told US that.
Nevertheless… I applaud Amazon for stepping up and making a huge commitment (financially and logistically) to turn non-performing stores into something more profitable, and more palatable to consumers.
Of course, if anybody can afford such a bold move, it’s Amazon. For the first 9 months of 2025, Amazon reported total net income was $56.5 billion, a significant increase from the $39.2 billion reported over the same period in 2024. That makes Amazon bigger than many small countries…
~ Maggie J.