Amazon to open two pop-up stores in California

15 Oct 2014

Hot on the heels of last week’s announcement that Amazon is to open its first ever bricks-and-mortar store in New York, the e-commerce giant has unveiled plans for two pop-up outlets in San Francisco and Sacramento.

GeekWire reports the California stores will open on 22 October, specialise in Amazon-produced products, and operate throughout the Christmas period.

“We’re excited to open new pop-up kiosks in San Francisco and Sacramento in time for the holidays so that customers can try out our new devices,” a spokesperson for Amazon told the site.

“The team is moving incredibly quickly – already this year we’ve launched Fire TV, Fire phone, new Fire tablets, new Kindle e-readers, and a bunch of new features and services.

“While customers can already see our products online and at retailers like Best Buy and Staples, we wanted to provide another option to try out our full line-up leading into the holidays.”

Amazon’s upcoming New York store will be a permanent outlet located in Midtown Manhattan’s famed 34th Street, across from the Empire State Building. Rather than operating as a traditional retail store, however, the store will essentially be run like a mini-warehouse. This will allow customers to collect their online purchases, as well as exchange or return them if necessary. The store will also allow for same-day delivery within the New York area.

Dean Van Nguyen was a contributor to Silicon Republic

editorial@siliconrepublic.com