Innovation is nothing without distribution - Amazon's new automated stores

Amazon has “thrown open” the doors of its first bricks and mortar store, Seattle’s Amazon Go. The Next Web reports that the opening comes more than a year after the retailer announced it was extending its grip on consumers’ purses. Effectively, the store works like the automated check-outs employed for more than a decade by major retailers like Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose – only without the need to queue and, hopefully, without the faff of “unexpected item in the bagging area”. The launch of Amazon Go will surely test the reliability of its distribution channels. This fascinating piece from Pymnts looks at the (often overlooked) importance of distribution within the modern supply chain and how the unspoken developments here allow the rest of the operation to succeed.