Amazon admits failure on its decade-long grocery store experiment, closing all 72 Amazon Go and Fresh locations to refocus on profitable delivery and premium Whole Foods—proof that even tech giants can’t escape basic business discipline.
Story Snapshot
- Amazon closes all 72 physical Amazon Go (15 stores) and Amazon Fresh (57 stores) by February 1, 2026, with California extended to March due to state rules.
- Pivot boosts Whole Foods with 100+ new stores planned and expands same-day grocery delivery to 2,300+ U.S. cities.
- Hundreds of employees face layoffs as the company ends underperforming formats started under Jeff Bezos.
- Stock rises 1.5% to $242.08, rewarding investors for CEO Andy Jassy’s focus on high-growth areas over wasteful experiments.
- Just Walk Out tech survives via licensing to third parties like arenas and hospitals.
Announcement Details
On January 27, 2026, Amazon announced the closure of all 72 physical Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh stores. The company cited failure to create a distinctive customer experience with viable economics for scaling. Most stores shut February 1, 2026, while California locations receive a 45-day extension due to state requirements.
This ends a decade of experimentation in cashierless and mass-market grocery formats. CEO Andy Jassy oversees the strategic shift away from these low-return ventures.
#BREAKING: Amazon is closing all of its Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh grocery stores while ramping up online grocery delivery — a sweeping shift that could reshape how millions of Americans shop for food. Details: https://t.co/OlnFcGmVlB pic.twitter.com/NlBKffft17
— KTLA (@KTLA) January 27, 2026
Historical Context and Challenges
Amazon launched Amazon Go in 2018 with Just Walk Out technology after acquiring Whole Foods for $13.7 billion in 2017. Amazon Fresh debuted in 2020 as a lower-price option. Prior setbacks included closing bookstores and 4-star stores in 2022, $720 million impairments, and shutting eight Go stores in 2023.
CEO Jassy highlighted stock shortages, high costs, and obsolescence issues that year. UK Fresh stores closed in September 2025 amid post-pandemic cost-cutting, including 18,000 layoffs.
These moves reflect disciplined capital allocation under Jassy, contrasting Bezos-era innovation pushes that prioritized flashy tech over profitability. Fresh sales via same-day delivery surged 40 times since January 2025, validating the online focus.
Stakeholder Impacts and Leadership
Jason Buechel, VP of Worldwide Grocery Stores and Whole Foods CEO, issued a memo to employees noting closures are difficult but inform future concepts. Hundreds of Go and Fresh workers face layoffs starting this week.
Whole Foods, with over 550 stores, gains resources for 100+ new locations and five additional Daily Shop formats by end of 2026. Investors cheered the news, with shares up 1.5% to $242.08, appreciating exit from low-ROI physical formats.
Competitors like Walmart and Costco stand to benefit indirectly as mass-market shoppers lose Amazon’s budget physical option, shifting toward Whole Foods’ premium model. Jassy’s leadership emphasizes high-growth delivery and tech licensing over brick-and-mortar risks.
Amazon shutters all Go, Fresh stores as it bets big on grocery delivery
Source: KTLA https://t.co/M7Q8m8wQsp— Philip Demond Powell (@Terrysboy) January 28, 2026
Future Strategy and Industry Ripple Effects
Amazon expands grocery delivery with fresh items in nine of ten orders across 2,300+ cities. Just Walk Out technology deploys in over 360 third-party sites, including arenas and hospitals. New tests include Amazon Grocery in Chicago, store-within-store in Pennsylvania, and supercenter exploration.
Q4 2025 earnings in early February may detail closure charges. This validates delivery dominance, pressuring rivals on costs and tech adoption while refocusing the $13.7 billion Whole Foods investment.
Experts note Fresh’s execution woes plagued rollout, with no scalable model despite encouraging signals. The pivot mirrors broader retail optimization, ending Amazon-branded grocery stores except Whole Foods.
Sources:
Amazon Closing All Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh Stores
Amazon Closes Go, Fresh Stores to Focus on Whole Foods
Amazon Closing All Amazon Fresh and Go Stores
