SEATTLE, July 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading online retailer Amazon.com (Nasdaq: AMZN) today launched two completely new stores: Amazon.com Electronics and Amazon.com Toys & Games.
Together, these two stores turn what consumers say are among the most difficult shopping experiences into hassle-free ones. Indeed, in a nationwide poll of people who have bought toys and electronics in stores, more than half said they would prefer to buy toys and electronics online (see survey data below). "With this launch, our goal is to give customers the Amazon.com experience -- everything from 1-Click(TM) shopping and helpful information to the high level of customer service we traditionally provide -- in the two important categories of toys and electronics," said Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com founder and CEO.
Amazon.com Electronics features a full range of popular electronics products and brands: everything from the latest digital camcorders to computer peripherals to televisions. To help customers choose from this large selection, Amazon.com Electronics provides detailed buying guides and expert product reviews. These, combined with candid comments and ratings from people who have bought and used the products, make it easy for shoppers to choose the right products for their needs.
Amazon.com Toys & Games offers a broad selection, ranging from hot new toys usually found at superstores to specialty toys from hundreds of small toymakers. The store also offers a Toys for Grownups section, a perfect place to find office toys, retro classics, and party games. Amazon.com Toys & Games is designed to be the most convenient and informative place anywhere -- online or off -- to shop for toys and games. With numerous ways to browse -- by age, by price, by well-known brands, by specialty brands, by favorite characters -- as well as unique search technology that sorts search results according to customer buying criteria, shoppers can find the toys they're after more easily than anywhere else. Amazon.com Toys & Games also provides in-depth reviews from its own staff of toy experts, as well as reviews and ratings of toys from customers, so shoppers can have complete confidence in the appropriateness of the toys they are selecting.
Both new stores offer broad selection, great convenience, low prices, and comprehensive information to help customers buy the right products.
In addition, both stores feature a no-risk return policy and are supported by Amazon.com's world-class customer service department so customers can buy electronics, toys, and games online with complete confidence.
Consumers are ready to start buying toys and consumer electronics from Amazon.com. Both categories have sold well in the Amazon.com Gifts store, and a recent Amazon.com poll found that 55 percent of shoppers would prefer to buy these products online. In addition: * 80 percent said they postponed or delayed the purchase of an electronics product because of the difficulties of shopping in stores * 36 percent said they found it difficult to choose the right brands or models and 34 percent said they had difficulty understanding product features * 71 percent said they had encountered salespeople who did not know the products, while 65 percent said it was hard even to find salespeople in an electronics store *Respondents said the three most painful shopping experiences were purchasing consumer electronics (50 percent), casual clothing (25 percent), and toys or games (16 percent)
The poll was conducted for Amazon.com by Los Angeles-based Impulse Research Corp. between June 25 and 29. The 2,597 respondents were recruited online and screened to be representative of the U.S. population. The sampling error is plus or minus 2 percent at the 95 percent confidence level.
About Amazon.com, Inc.
Amazon.com, Inc., the Internet's No. 1 music, No. 1 video, and No. 1 book retailer, opened its virtual doors on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth's Biggest Selection(TM) with online auctions, toys and games, consumer electronics, free electronic greeting cards, and more than 4.7 million book, music-CD, video, DVD, and computer-game titles. Amazon.com seeks to be the world's most customer-centric company, where people can find and discover anything they may want to buy online. As part of its efforts to provide the best shopping experience for customers, Amazon.com provides secure credit-card payment, personalized recommendations, streamlined ordering through 1-Click(SM) technology, and hassle-free auction bidding with Bid-Click(SM).
Amazon.com operates two international Web sites: www.amazon.co.uk in the United Kingdom and www.amazon.de in Germany. Amazon.com also operates PlanetAll (www.planetall.com), a Web-based address book, calendar, and reminder service. It also operates the Internet Movie Database (www.imdb.com), the Web's comprehensive and authoritative source of information on more than 150,000 movies and entertainment programs and 500,000 cast and crew members dating from the birth of film in 1892 to the present. Amazon.com also operates LiveBid.com (www.livebid.com), the sole provider of live-event auctions on the Internet.
In addition, Amazon.com has invested in leading Internet retailers that are improving the lives of customers by making shopping easier and more convenient: drugstore.com, an online retail and information source for health, beauty, wellness, personal care and pharmacy, at www.drugstore.com; Pets.com, the online leader for pet products, expert information, and services, at www.pets.com; and HomeGrocer.com, the first fully integrated Internet grocery-shopping and home-delivery service, with operations in Seattle and Portland, Oregon, at www.homegrocer.com.
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, Amazon.com's limited operating history, anticipated losses, unpredictability of future revenues, potential fluctuations in quarterly operating results, seasonality, consumer trends, competition, risks of system interruption, management of potential growth, risks related to auction services, and risks of new business areas, international expansion, business combinations, and strategic alliances. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com's financial results is included in Amazon.com's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1998 and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 1999.
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