Amazon is to put a halt to the rollout of its checkout-free Fresh stores due to slow sales caused by the cost-of-living crisis.
As a result, the retailer has walked away from talks of dozens of potential sites for new stores and will not be looking for any more sites, according to reports in The Sunday Times.
Its 19 existing stores are located mostly in London, other than the latest store to open, which is based in Sevenoaks, Kent. These will be joined by a handful of openings this year, in sites where Amazon had already committed to a lease.
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According to The Sunday Times, Amazon said it would look at re-initiating expansion plans in the next 12 to 18 months as it has targeted opening hundreds of its Fresh stores across the UK.
A spokesman for the company confirmed the break in store openings, saying the retail giant “looks forward to opening additional Amazon Fresh stores in the near future.”
The disappointing sales come as consumers are switching supermarkets to look for lower food prices following overall supermarket inflation hitting 11.6% last month, its highest level since 2008.
Figures composed by the Grocer suggest that the average price of a basket in Amazon cost 3.7% more than last year.
This news comes as Amazon claims it is facing “significant” changes to its delisting process, as it continues to face scrutiny by the Grocery Supply Code of Practice.
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