First Look: Amazon’s first-ever physical clothing store opens

Amazon Style is officially open.

The approximate 30,000-sq.-ft., two-level store — Amazon’s first brick-and-mortar location dedicated to apparel and accessories — is located at The Americana at Brand, an upscale lifestyle center in Glendale, Calif.   Featuring a sleek, modern design, Amazon Style offers men’s and women’s apparel from a wide assortment of popular and premium brands that range from Calvin Klein and Levi’s to Vince, Equipment and Theory.  The selection also includes brands never before featured in a physical store, such as CRZ Yoga, and top Amazon brands including Amazon Essentials, The Drop, Amazon Aware and more. 

In addition to apparel, shoes and accessories, the store features select products across skincare, haircare, bath and body, and cosmetics. There is also a “Sales & Deals” section. Shoppers scan the QR code to find out what’s currently on sale. Curated personalized items are also listed.

Amazon Style has a similar look and feel to other upscale apparel stores. But it stands out from the competition in the way it blends technology into the shopping experience. Using machine-learning technology to help customers find clothes and personalize recommendations, Amazon Style succeeds in combining the personalization and convenience of e-commerce with the immediacy of brick-and-mortar shopping.

Shopping the store is easy. From when they enter to when they exit, customers can use the Amazon Shopping app to personalize their shopping experience and note their size and fashion preferences as well as their credit card number for easy checkout.   (Customers can also shop the store without using the Amazon app.)

Using the app, customers scan an item’s QR code to add it to a fitting room, or send it directly to the pickup counter to purchase. Shoppers receive a notification when their fitting room is ready.

Once in the fitting room, they can use the in-room touchscreen to request additional sizes, colors, and styles or browse personalized recommendations that can be delivered in minutes. (Amazon will leverage its machine learning algorithms to recommend tailored, real-time suggestions regarding other items they be interested in buying.)

In another big difference from conventional stores, most of the clothing at Amazon Style is out of sight and kept in the back of the store, with only one sample of each item displayed on the sales floor. The format allows the store to offer more than double the number of products offered for sale in a store of its size.

We obsessed over designing a shopping experience focused on helping customers find great looks, and it led us to create Amazon Style,” Simoina Vasen, managing director, Amazon Style, wrote in a corporate blog post back in January when the store was first announced. “We’re so excited to offer a shopping experience that inspires discovery and combines the best of shopping on Amazon.com with the benefit of touching and trying on items to ensure a great fit.”