As we all know, often to our chagrin, Amazon is the world’s largest online retailer, followed by Staples. Inc., Apple Inc., Wal-Mart.com, and Dell Inc. But although they’ve attempted to remedy their weakness, the company doesn’t have bricks and mortar stores that you can actually walk into.
When Amazon entered the the hardware business it partnered with retail stores such as Staples, Target, Best Buy, Radio Shack, Wal-Mart, and Office Depot to sell Kindle e-Readers and Kindle Fire tablets. That way, potential customers could actually try out the devices before parting with their money.
Earlier this year Target Corp. announced it would stop selling Amazon’s Kindle lines. Bad news for Amazon… then a few minutes ago (September 20), Jessica Wohl reported for Reuters:
Exclusive: Wal-Mart stops selling Amazon Kindles
(Reuters) - Wal-Mart Stores Inc will no longer sell Amazon.com Inc's Kindle products, making it the second major chain to stop selling Amazon's devices, as the world's largest retailer makes a bet that consumers are more interested in other gadgets.
"We have recently made the business decision to not carry Amazon tablets and eReaders beyond our existing inventory and purchase commitments," Wal-Mart said in a memo sent to store managers dated Wednesday. "This includes all Amazon Kindle models current and recently announced."
Wal-Mart said the decision was consistent with its overall merchandising strategy. While Wal-Mart dwarfs other retailers in overall sales, it trails Amazon and others in online sales and has been trying to beef up its Internet business. Consumers who buy Kindle tablets such as the new Kindle Fire HD can shop on the devices for more than just digital books, pushing Amazon into heightened competition with stores.
Out of six major retailers, two have bailed out, and no doubt Target and Wal-Mart moved a fair number of Kindles.
Amazingly (unless you have a devious mind) neither Target nor Wal-Mart have offered substantial reasons for dropping Amazon, while the grapevine goes wild with conspiracy theories and tales of power struggles. Who knows? I could be mistaken, but a little bird keeps chirping that—to paraphrase the old and tired German waiter—the wurst is yet to come.
As we all know, often to our chagrin, Amazon is the world’s largest online retailer, followed by Staples. Inc., Apple Inc., Wal-Mart.com, and Dell Inc. But although they’ve attempted to remedy their weakness, the company doesn’t have bricks and mortar stores that you can actually walk into.