Amazon Go Case Study: Venturing into Traditional Retail Analysis

This case study examines Amazon's venture into the retail world with Amazon Go, stemming from its success as an online retailer. It performs a SWOT analysis, highlighting strengths like product versatility and efficient delivery, weaknesses such as tax issues and flop products, opportunities including backward integration and global expansion, and threats like competition and government regulations. The study explores whether Amazon can replicate its online success in the offline market by leveraging its brand image and the preference for physical evidence in marketing. It also discusses how Amazon can utilize its existing online assets, manage operational efficiency, ensure product quality, and navigate the challenges of changing consumer behavior and increasing competition. Resistance from store employees and unions is also identified as a potential threat.

Running head: AMAZON CASE STUDY
Amazon Case Study
Name of Student
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Author Note

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AMAZON CASE STUDY
The essay can be summarised as the ventures of Amazon Go that has its aim in
venturing into the retail world. The expansion and development of Amazon as an online retail
store prompted the owner to undertake such a venture. The plan of such a venture had been in
the minds of the owners for four years. The essay conducts a SWOT analysis of the
capabilities that this organisation possesses.
Strength
 Versatility of products
 Efficient delivery network
 Strong capabilities
Weakness
 Tax issues
 Flop products
 High debts
Opportunity
 Backward integration
 Expansion in the global market
 Branding
Threat
 Competition
 Government rules and regulations
 Not much barriers to entry
Table: SWOT analysis
(Source: Created by author)
Could Amazon replicate the competitive advantage that contributed to its online success
in the offline retail market?
The success that Amazon had in the online market can be replicated offline because of
the popularity of the brand. The fact that Amazon has developed a brand image has played a
huge role in gaining success online (Amazon.com, 2018). Another factor that can lead to
success is the fact that people prefer physical evidence while marketing. Hence, proceeding
with its brand image, Amazon can be an effective offline store and can replicate its success it
had online.

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AMAZON CASE STUDY
Could the company leverage its existing online assets and capabilities in the online
segments?
According to Hill and Westbrook (2017), the SWOT analysis is used to understand
the resources and capabilities of a company. In the case of Amazon, the existing assets that it
has online can be used to gain success in offline projects. This is because the online materials
can be of severe advantage offline. The maximisation of profits can be done offline as a
means to lure the customers into trusting the products.
How could Amazon manage the efficiency of its operations and the quality of its
products in the long run?
One of the strong points of Amazon is the diversity of products. It sells products that
can be attributed to fashion, electronics, food items as well as toys. However, such a
diversification could mean that the company need heavy efficiency for its operations. One of
the factors that satisfy customers is a product with good quality. To ensure that the operations
of the company along with the quality of products are maintained, Amazon can hire local and
skilled people at the stores.
Did the company have capabilities to do it?
The capabilities of Amazon are another strong point that has been evidenced by the
SWOT analysis. To ensure that quality products are maintained, Amazon can develop its
capabilities by analysing its resources. The strategic manner in which the company can
expand itself in the market provides insights into the capabilities of the company (Dick &
Basu, 2014).
Would Amazon Go change the way people bought and consumed as Amazon.com had
done so successfully before?

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AMAZON CASE STUDY
Amazon Go had managed to target the markets that were the primary customers of
Amazon.com. The fact that both Amazon Go and Amazon.com had the same aim can help
the company gain a similar amount of success in the market (Amazon.com, 2018). The fact
that such a concept had been in the making for four years provides evidence that the concept
of Amazon Go had not been a new idea. Within the four years, extensive research had been
made concerning the loyalty of the customers in different labels.
Would the company able to go against the trend of grocery shopping, which was
increasingly moving towards online market?
Lian and Yen (2014) stated that in the modern world, people prefer online shopping to
avoid long lines and to get certain amounts of discount. Hence, it can be difficult for Amazon
Go to change this mentality of the people and divert the online marketing prospects.
However, with proper planning and promotion of the items, this trend can be changed.
Amazon can influence such changes by ceasing the sales of grocery online. This way, target
customers need to visit the physical store to get the required grocery.
Could the company develop these offline retail offers globally?
Expansion in the global market is an opportunity that Amazon needs to grasp. It has
already been seen that the company have a huge customer base online. Based on this success,
Amazon can direct the offline success of its physical stores. The expansion into global market
with the offline stores can be attributed to its quality of products and services (Bernaciak,
2015).
Could competitors easily imitate this innovative shopping technique?
Some of the main competitors include Walmart and Target. During its day as an
online store, the threat has been surpassed. However, with the introduction of the offline

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stores, Amazon may find it difficult to mitigate the challenges. This is because the
competitors, as well as the local companies, have been in the offline business for a long time.
Hence, the ways to satisfy customers are familiar to these companies.
Would Amazon face resistance from store employees and unions?
De Brentani and Kleinschmidt (2015) stated that resistance due to the possibility of
job cuts is one of the threatening factors that Amazon needs to deal with. Unions and
employees can pose threats by indulging in lockdowns that can hamper the progress of the
company. The acquisitions of the company may try to break away due to failure in the
market.

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Reference
Amazon.com. (2018). Amazon.com. Retrieved 20 February 2018, from
https://www.amazon.com/
Bernaciak, M. (Ed.). (2015). Market expansion and social dumping in Europe. Routledge.
De Brentani, U., & Kleinschmidt, E. J. (2015). The impact of company resources and
capabilities on global new product program performance. Project Management
Journal, 46(1), 12-29.
Dick, A. S., & Basu, K. (2014). Customer loyalty: toward an integrated conceptual
framework. Journal of the academy of marketing science, 22(2), 99-113.
Hill, T., & Westbrook, R. (2017). SWOT analysis: it's time for a product recall. Long range
planning, 30(1), 46-52.
Lian, J. W., & Yen, D. C. (2014). Online shopping drivers and barriers for older adults: Age
and gender differences. Computers in Human Behavior, 37, 133-143.