Kohl’s will soon be accepting returns for Amazon.com at dozens of stores, in another sign of the bricks-and-mortar retailer accepting the power of the online giant.
Eighty-two Kohl’s locations in and around Los Angeles and Chicago will accept, package and ship returns from Amazon shoppers back to warehouses at no charge come October. The locations will also have dedicated parking for the returns, the Wisconsin-based retailer said.
Richard Schepp, Kohl’s chief administration offer, said the arrangement is “unprecedented and innovative.”
“This is a great example of how Kohl’s and Amazon are leveraging each other’s strengths — the power of Kohl’s store portfolio and omnichannel capabilities combined with the power of Amazon’s reach and loyal customer base,” Schepp added.
Meanwhile, Shivi Shankaran, Amazon’s director of returns, said Kohl’s will serve as “convenient” drop-off locations, while plopping consumers into a “great shopping experience.”
Shares of Kohl’s rose 4.7 percent to $47 during morning trading, an eight-month high, while shares of Amazon ticked down by about half a percent to $969.62.
The arrangement comes about two weeks after Kohl’s said it will be giving Amazon 1,000 square feet in 10 of its stores in the areas of L.A. and Chicago to showcase the online retailer’s range of smart devices and in-home services, while also serving as a location to shop its web site.
Kohl’s characterized that move as an “innovation” as well.
Kohl’s decided recently to reformat about half of its 1,100 stores to be smaller through changes to inventory and fixtures, although it said no subleasing was involved. Shortly before that, the retailer posted second-quarter financial figures showing sales down 0.9 percent and profits down 6 percent to $208 million.
While Kohl’s said its in-store Amazon offering is “a first-of-its-kind experience,” other retailers have been integrating more advanced tech into their stores.
Sears in July partnered with Amazon to sell certain smart appliances such as air conditioners, while Amazon would sell some Kenmore brand appliances online.
Wal-Mart, too, recently inked a deal with Google to promote voice shopping through the latter’s own artificial intelligence assistant device.
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