Amazon is pulling the plug on its physical grocery store experiment. The e-commerce giant announced today that it will close all Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh locations across the country, pivoting instead to an aggressive expansion of its Whole Foods Market brand.
The surprise move affects approximately 75 stores nationwide — around 60 Amazon Fresh and 15 Amazon Go locations — marking a significant retreat from the company’s previous brick-and-mortar grocery ambitions. Amazon acknowledged that despite some positive indicators, its branded grocery stores failed to achieve the necessary breakthrough to justify continued investment.
“While we’ve seen encouraging signals in our Amazon-branded physical grocery stores, we haven’t yet created a truly distinctive customer experience with the right economic model needed for large-scale expansion,” the company said in a statement obtained by Business Insider.
Doubling Down on Whole Foods
Instead of abandoning physical retail altogether, Amazon plans to double down on its $13.7 billion Whole Foods acquisition. The company revealed plans to open more than 100 new Whole Foods locations over the next few years, significantly expanding the upscale grocery chain’s footprint.
But what about Amazon’s much-hyped “Just Walk Out” technology? That innovation, which allowed shoppers to skip traditional checkout lines, will apparently live on in a different format. The company confirmed it will open five additional Whole Foods Market Daily Shop locations by the end of 2026 — smaller format stores that may incorporate elements of the cashierless technology pioneered in Amazon Go locations.
Industry analysts have long questioned Amazon’s fragmented approach to physical grocery retail. Operating three distinct brands — Whole Foods, Amazon Fresh, and Amazon Go — created operational challenges and confused messaging to consumers. The streamlined focus on Whole Foods suggests Amazon is finally addressing those concerns.
What Happens Next?
The transition won’t happen overnight. According to GeekWire, some of the 57 Amazon Fresh and 15 Amazon Go locations may eventually reopen as Whole Foods stores, though the company hasn’t specified how many or which locations might be converted.
For Amazon Prime members who’ve grown accustomed to special discounts at Amazon Fresh stores, the company emphasized it will continue investing heavily in grocery delivery services. This suggests Amazon still sees significant opportunity in the grocery space — just not through its own branded physical stores.
The retreat represents an unusual public admission of failure for Amazon, a company known for its willingness to experiment but also for its ruthless abandonment of underperforming initiatives. Despite billions invested in cashierless technology and store buildouts, the Amazon-branded grocery experience apparently never resonated strongly enough with consumers to justify the continued expense.
One former Amazon executive, speaking on condition of anonymity, put it bluntly: “Sometimes even Amazon has to admit when something isn’t working. The grocery business is brutally competitive, and Whole Foods already gives them a strong platform. Why keep fighting a multi-front war?”
