This analysis comes just after Amazon announced its plans to open more Amazon Go stores in Chicago and Seattle. Though the company’s physical store operations are relatively new, it appears to be in line with the shopping patterns of other established brick-and-mortar retailers, but consumers aren’t spending as much there as they are in similar stores.
After the company was criticized for not accepting cash, it opened its first store that takes cash in New York in May. The move towards accepting cash could work in Amazon’s favor two-fold. On one hand, offering cash payment could win over underbanked or unbanked customers, and on the other, the move could safeguard Amazon from critics and regulators seeking to ban cashless retailers for discriminatory practices.
