A Guide To Guessing Where Amazon Is Going

If you want to know where Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is going, just look at where they aren’t. It’s a perfect road map to the future.

A new study by market research firm Statista breaks down how much stuff is bought online and how much is purchased in stores, and it reads like a moving historical narrative of the giant online retailer.

Based on the purchasing preferences of 24,471 consumers in 29 countries, here’s a rundown on each retail sector and how much Amazon (and other online sellers) is shredding it:

Groceries: 70% In-Store, 23% Online

Amazon is covering it. The company announced in June that it was buying Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:WFM), completely freaking out everybody in the food business. Goodbye stock clerks and cashiers; hello robots and smart scanners.

Furniture & Homeware: 59% In-Store, 30% Online

Yes, you can get a sofa set as well as a kitchen table and chairs. And Amazon is reportedly eyeing a brick-and-mortar chain of showrooms.

Household Appliances: 56% In-Store, 33% Online

Amazon took a big step in that direction when it announced it would be selling Kenmore-branded appliances from Sears Holdings Corp (NASDAQ:SHLD), sending shudders through that sector.

DIY & Home Improvement: 52% In-Store, 30% Online

You can’t buy everything you need to build a house online like you can at Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD) and Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW), but you can get the tools you need.

Clothing & Footwear: 51% In-Store, 40% Online

Already making inroads, the company this month added Amazon Apparel, a clothing subscription service. U.S. apparel sales climbed 3 percent last year; Amazon's U.S. apparel sales saw a 25 percent boost.

Consumer Electronics & Computers: 51% In-Store, 43% Online

After besting Best Buy Co Inc (NYSE:BBY) to become the nation’s leading electronics seller, Best Buy figured if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.

Jewelry & Watches: 49% In-Store, 32% Online

Amazon already partners with jewelry designers and sellers who normally rely on trade and craft shows to peddle their wares, broadening their local footprint to cover the world.

Health & Beauty: 47% In-Store, 37% Online

When your local store just doesn’t carry that special soap.

Sports Equipment: 44% In-Store, 36% Online

Amazon is obliterating Foot Locker, Inc. (NYSE:FL)

Toys: 37% In-Store, 39% Online

Toys “R” Us? Toys “R” increasingly Amazon.

Books, Music, Movies & Video Games: 28% In-Store, 60% Online

Hard to believe that Amazon started out this way in 1995, with what seemed like a grandiose slogan: “Earth’s Biggest Bookstore.”

Related Link: Sears Goes To Amazon In Search Of A Lifeline

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