Target to stop selling Amazon Kindle products in favor of iPad, Nook
Target said it will stop carrying Amazon's Kindle product line, including the Kindle Fire, which is estimated to make up more than half of all US tablets using Android.
Target will continue to sell Apple's iPad as well as alternative tablet and e-reader devices, including Barnes & Noble's Nook, which also makes use of Android internally.
The news initially leaked via an internal memo, but Target has since officially confirmed its plans to drop Amazon's products, according to a report by Reuters.
The retailer's spokesperson Molly Snyder issued a statement saying, "Target continually evaluates its product assortment to deliver the best quality and prices for our guests. Target is phasing out Kindles and Amazon- and Kindle-branded products in the spring of 2012. We will continue to offer our guests a full assortment of ereaders and supporting accessories including the Nook."
Reuters said Target had "declined to comment on whether closer merchandising ties to Apple or broader competition with Amazon were also behind the move to stop selling Kindles," but the retailer's continued support for the Nook underlines the friction between Amazon and other retailers.
As a web marketer without a retail store presence, Amazon has long undercut both big box retailers and smaller merchants not only in price but also in its ability to sell goods to Americans without charging sales tax in most cases. US law does not compel Internet retailers to collect sales taxes if they do not have a physical business presence in a given state, an issue that has sparked controversy in many states that depend on sales taxes for their revenue as opposed to income or property taxes.
Amazon's business model behind the Kindle line, and particularly the Kindle Fire mini-tablet, revolves around selling merchandise directly to customers, in direct competition to retailers like Target. Amazon is understood to make very little in hardware profits, particularly on its $199 Kindle Fire tablet.
While Apple's iPad has become an increasingly important way for consumers to make purchases over the Internet, Apple is largely focused on selling its own products, and typically does so at prices that don't seek to undercut its retail partners.
Target has adorned its electronics sections with official Apple signage | Source: ifoAppleStore
In January, AppleInsider exclusively reported that Target would begin opening a series of "store within a store" locations focused on Apple's iPods and iOS devices, including the iPad and iPhone.
Target began selling Apple's iPod in 2002 and became the first retailer outside of Apple and Best Buy to carry the iPad in 2010, the same year it began selling iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4.
Target will continue to sell Apple's iPad as well as alternative tablet and e-reader devices, including Barnes & Noble's Nook, which also makes use of Android internally.
The news initially leaked via an internal memo, but Target has since officially confirmed its plans to drop Amazon's products, according to a report by Reuters.
The retailer's spokesperson Molly Snyder issued a statement saying, "Target continually evaluates its product assortment to deliver the best quality and prices for our guests. Target is phasing out Kindles and Amazon- and Kindle-branded products in the spring of 2012. We will continue to offer our guests a full assortment of ereaders and supporting accessories including the Nook."
Reuters said Target had "declined to comment on whether closer merchandising ties to Apple or broader competition with Amazon were also behind the move to stop selling Kindles," but the retailer's continued support for the Nook underlines the friction between Amazon and other retailers.
As a web marketer without a retail store presence, Amazon has long undercut both big box retailers and smaller merchants not only in price but also in its ability to sell goods to Americans without charging sales tax in most cases. US law does not compel Internet retailers to collect sales taxes if they do not have a physical business presence in a given state, an issue that has sparked controversy in many states that depend on sales taxes for their revenue as opposed to income or property taxes.
Amazon's business model behind the Kindle line, and particularly the Kindle Fire mini-tablet, revolves around selling merchandise directly to customers, in direct competition to retailers like Target. Amazon is understood to make very little in hardware profits, particularly on its $199 Kindle Fire tablet.
While Apple's iPad has become an increasingly important way for consumers to make purchases over the Internet, Apple is largely focused on selling its own products, and typically does so at prices that don't seek to undercut its retail partners.
Target has adorned its electronics sections with official Apple signage | Source: ifoAppleStore
In January, AppleInsider exclusively reported that Target would begin opening a series of "store within a store" locations focused on Apple's iPods and iOS devices, including the iPad and iPhone.
Target began selling Apple's iPod in 2002 and became the first retailer outside of Apple and Best Buy to carry the iPad in 2010, the same year it began selling iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4.
Comments
In before anti-Apple trolls claim this is "monopolistic" crap.
In before someone makes a nasty, baseless accusation.
Oops.
Maybe they weren't selling enough product to make it worthwhile carrying the product line. Retail stores have to do this from time to time to maximize profits per sq. ft.
Amazon and Target are competitors.
Amazon Prime is directed straight at the Target customer.
Just like how Amazon sells Apple Products even though they are competitors?
Amazon promotes using competitor's brick and mortar stores as nothing more than showrooms for people to buy direct from Amazon. For Target and the others to promote Amazon products is like cutting your own throat.
Quote:
Originally Posted by markbyrn
Amazon promotes using competitor's brick and mortar stores as nothing more than showrooms for people to buy direct from Amazon. For Target and the others to promote Amazon products is like cutting your own throat.
^This exactly. Amazon also promotes scanning barcodes from stores to comparison shop. This is all about Target v Amazon, nothing more. Nothing to do with Apple, Kindle sales, tablets or any other conspiracy theory.
i actually went to target last weekend for the first time in years. i usually buy most of my stuff from amazon or somewhere else
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
In before anti-Apple trolls claim this is "monopolistic" crap.
If the history of this blog is any guide to the future, what you say is quite true.
I'm sure this decision is based around several factors, including Target's connection to Apple, sell-thru for the Amazon products and the fact that Amazon's eco-system based around the Fire gives Target absolutely zero ability to cash in on any of it.
Getting more Kindles into the hands of more shoppers is not going to be a successful long term strategy for any bricks and mortar retailer. At least Target can make some profit from Apple's eco-system by selling iTunes cards, plus a plethora of 3rd party products that work with the iPhone, iPad, iPod.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jojo6969
Just like how Amazon sells Apple Products even though they are competitors?
False comparison really. Amazon is a retailer that happens to make a few products of its own, hence it is a direct competitor to Target (as primarily being in the retail space). Apple is a manufacturer that also happens to sell their products direct to consumers, so their primary concern is not retail. At the very minimum, Apple does not sell nearly as wide a range of products as Amazon and Target and so presents no true competition in their primary businesses.
Quote:
Originally Posted by I am a Zither Zather Zuzz
In before someone makes a nasty, baseless accusation.
I'm waiting for you to go on record claiming something else, then. Just, you know, to give everyone something to quote when you start claiming it in the future.
See frienemy.
kasper's slave seems to have missed the spotify ipad app launch and i taking cheap jabs at amazon.
(btw, I can only see the laughing emoticon in huddler pop up, strange, are others getting this?)
Quote:
Originally Posted by drblank
Maybe they weren't selling enough product to make it worthwhile carrying the product line. Retail stores have to do this from time to time to maximize profits per sq. ft.
That's about all there is to it.
Move along....
Quote:
Originally Posted by jojo6969
Just like how Amazon sells Apple Products even though they are competitors?
Yep, because it helps get people through the 'virtual' door! Target probably figured the same and as in Real Estate, it's all about "Location, Location, Location" with Target it's all about "Valuable Shelf Space, Valuable Shelf Space, Valuable Shelf Space" and it's good sense to have the "in" crowd best seller.
In AFTER the peacocks strut...
But the real point here is probably a profit issue, not gross sales.
Amazon sells their Kindle products pretty close to the bone, relying much more on content sales for profit.
Target gets none of that gravy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by myapplelove
(btw, I can only see the laughing emoticon in huddler pop up, strange, are others getting this?)
Yes.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
Quote:
Originally Posted by I am a Zither Zather Zuzz
In before someone makes a nasty, baseless accusation.
I'm waiting for you to go on record claiming something else, then. Just, you know, to give everyone something to quote when you start claiming it in the future.
Yet another nasty baseless accusation?
But I'll let it slide. There are many possibilities here.
Some folks take Target at its word - that it is paring its lineup in favor of what sells. That makes little sense to me because the Kindle line sells much more volume than the Nook.
However, we need to keep in mind that M$ just made a huge investment in the Nook - so maybe Target is looking forward to expected future volume. If so, then they have a lot of confidence in the future growth rate of the Nook.
It may be that the Kindle is selling TOO well, and that due to its volume, too much other stuff is being sold to Target customers via the Kindle. It is reasonable to think that Amazon is selling lots of stuff via the Kindle, as was rumored to be its intent when it launched at a very low price. Amazon has a huge overlap with Target in many categories - homewares, staples, etc. Could be that Target didn't want to sell a "Portal to Amazon" device in their stores. While there is some overlap with Target's wares from the iPad and the Nook. For the most part, those devices are used to buy digital goods, most in the form of data, rather than tangible goods like sheets and plastic stuff.
Or it could be that Apple is strongarming Target to get rid of the Kindle. I doubt that.
You seldom fail to crack me up.
Half of Android tablet sales??? According to the following article, Apple has sold 67 million iPads since its introduction two years ago. Amazon started selling the Fire last November... and has sold nearly 30 million of them.
That's half of APPLE'S sales, in just five months...
See http://www.iSights.org/2012/04/the-death-of-e-ink-and-the-dedicated-e-book-reader-1.html