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Amazon to shut all 19 Amazon Fresh UK stores, shift focus to online grocery

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Amazon.com announced Tuesday it will close all 19 of its Amazon Fresh UK convenience stores, less than five years after entering the British grocery market. Five of the locations will be converted into Whole Foods Market outlets, the U.S. organic grocery chain Amazon acquired in 2017.

Amazon Fresh had introduced Britain to its “Just Walk Out” technology, allowing shoppers to pick up items and skip checkout lines. But the company said after evaluating the business, it made the “difficult decision” to exit physical convenience grocery in the UK, citing greater growth opportunities in online delivery.

The company stressed it continues to see strong demand for groceries through:

  • Amazon.co.uk (household essentials and groceries)

  • Amazon Fresh online

  • Whole Foods Market

  • Delivery partnerships with Morrisons, Co-op, Iceland, and Gopuff

Looking ahead, Amazon plans to add perishable groceries with same-day delivery to its UK online store starting next year, expanding beyond its current essentials offering.

The move underscores Amazon’s pivot away from physical retail in the UK grocery sector toward leveraging its dominant e-commerce and delivery infrastructure.

GameStop’s Q1 Revenue Drops Amid Rising Shift to Digital Gaming

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GameStop reported a 17% decline in first-quarter revenue to $732.4 million as consumers increasingly favored digital game downloads over physical purchases at stores, sending its shares down 4.6% in after-hours trading on Tuesday.

The Texas-based videogame retailer, known for its volatile stock and 2021 Reddit-driven rally, continues to face challenges adapting to the gaming industry’s shift towards digital downloads, game streaming, and online shopping.

While GameStop expanded its ecommerce platform to include digital downloads and online merchandise, it has yet to fully benefit from the digital transition. Revenue from its hardware and accessories segment, covering new and pre-owned games, dropped about 32% in the quarter.

After closing nearly 600 U.S. stores in 2024, GameStop announced plans to shutter a “significant number” of additional locations in 2025, highlighting ongoing struggles in its retail operations despite attempts at turnaround.

On a positive note, cost-cutting measures helped GameStop report a net profit of $44.8 million for Q1, a reversal from a $32.3 million net loss a year earlier. However, the company still posted an operating loss of $10.8 million, which included $35.5 million in impairment charges tied to international restructuring.

GameStop recently sold its Canadian subsidiary Electronics Boutique Canada and expects to complete the sale of its French operations within fiscal 2025.

Notably, the company purchased 4,710 bitcoins between early May and mid-June, following a March board approval to add bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset.

GameStop Doubles Down on Bitcoin as a Treasury Reserve Asset and Plans More Store Closures

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GameStop (GME.N) announced on Tuesday that its board has approved the addition of bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset, a move that mirrors the strategy of corporate bitcoin giant MicroStrategy (MSTR.O). The decision highlights GameStop’s shift toward embracing cryptocurrency as a core component of its business operations.

GameStop’s Strategic Shift Toward Bitcoin

The move to add bitcoin to its treasury comes shortly after a similar rebranding by MicroStrategy, which removed “Micro” from its name in February to emphasize its focus on the cryptocurrency. MicroStrategy, known for being the largest corporate holder of bitcoin, has integrated the cryptocurrency into the heart of its operations.

GameStop has stated that it will use a portion of its cash, future debt, or equity issuances to invest in bitcoin, though it did not specify the maximum amount it plans to acquire. This strategic shift follows a broader push to diversify the company’s financial strategies in the face of continued challenges in its core retail business.

Performance and Challenges in Retail Business

Despite the addition of bitcoin to its reserves, GameStop continues to face difficulties in its primary business of retailing videogame hardware and merchandise. The company reported a significant rise in fourth-quarter profit, which more than doubled to $131.3 million from $63.1 million the previous year, largely due to cost-cutting efforts. GameStop also posted quarterly revenue of $1.28 billion, down from $1.79 billion in the same period last year.

The company, which became a focal point during the “meme stock” trading craze, has struggled with the shift toward digital downloads, game streaming, and e-commerce, contributing to a decline in physical retail sales.

Future Outlook and Store Closures

In response to these challenges, GameStop has aggressively reduced its retail footprint, closing 590 stores in the U.S. in fiscal 2024. The company expects to close a “significant number” of additional stores in fiscal 2025 as part of its ongoing efforts to streamline operations and adapt to the changing gaming landscape.

Broader Cryptocurrency Adoption and Strategic Moves

GameStop’s decision to invest in bitcoin aligns with broader trends of increasing institutional adoption of cryptocurrencies. This move follows U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent executive order to establish a strategic reserve of cryptocurrencies, further reflecting growing interest in digital assets.