This is very interesting. I’m surprised at many levels that they would build out a physical outlet channel for unsold inventory. Outlets are key for many companies who otherwise would sell their surplus to TJMaxx for off-price sales. What’s surprising is that Amazon is moving more and more towards enabling third party sellers versus their own inventory. Not sure how this strategy would impact third party sellers who are drop-shipping their goods directly to consumers after purchase on Amazon. It may likely be a service Amazon could offer sellers, however I’m not sure why they’d need a separate retail channel to move unsold inventory versus adjusting price or creating a clearance section on Amazon.com, which they effectively have through use of special deals, lightening deals etc. it may be a stepping stone to something else and bigger. Amazons retail endeavors in brick and mortar have been focused on grocery (through Whole Foods), Amazon book stores, and their own Amazon Go contactless concept store. Discount outlet stores are the next logical step but curious how it plays with their other retail formats and with their increased focus on 3rd party marketplace sales.
