Amazon to Shut Down All Fresh Supermarkets and Convenience Stores, Shifting Focus to Instant Delivery and Whole Foods Market

Ebrun Exclusive: Amazon recently announced that it will close all physical stores under its Amazon Fresh supermarkets (57 in total) and Amazon Go cashier-less convenience stores (15 in total). Some of the closed stores will be converted into Whole Foods Market locations.

In its public statement, Amazon noted that over the past few years, the company has continuously experimented with offline retail models through its two own-brand physical grocery stores, Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh. However, to date, it has failed to establish a "truly differentiated customer experience" or develop a business model capable of supporting large-scale expansion. Amazon also reiterated that it will continue to offer Amazon Fresh services through online channels, allowing customers in available regions to place orders online and receive deliveries.

The company stated that it will focus its resources on online grocery and daily essentials delivery, further expanding rapid delivery services such as same-day and 30-minute delivery. According to reports, Amazon already serves over 150 million grocery customers, generating total sales of $150 billion, and has launched same-day delivery services in more than 5,000 U.S. cities and towns. Sales of daily necessities now account for one-third of Amazon's total sales.

At the same time, Amazon plans to further drive the expansion of Whole Foods Market. Since acquiring Whole Foods Market for $13.7 billion in 2017, the brand's sales have increased by over 40%, and it currently operates more than 550 stores in the United States.

Amazon plans to add over 100 new Whole Foods Market stores in the coming years and promote the smaller, convenience-oriented format called Whole Foods Market Daily Shop, offering consumers prepared foods, coffee, and daily essentials. By the end of 2026, Amazon expects to open five new Whole Foods Market Daily Shop locations.

Amazon is also testing other new retail concepts, such as developing large Walmart-style hypermarket grocery stores near Chicago and introducing "store-within-a-store" experiences in Pennsylvania Whole Foods Market locations.