The Backroom: What’s going on with Amazon Fashion?

A few years ago, researchers at various firms noted that Amazon would soon be joining – if not unseating – Walmart and Macy’s as a top seller of clothing in the U.S. Just this month, Wells Fargo analysts said that milestone has been reached, estimating that the e-commerce giant and its third-party sellers last year sold more than $68 billion of apparel and footwear in the U.S., making it number one. In 2023, Amazon saw $255.9 billion in product sales overall, according to a financial filing.

But how much of the apparel offered by Amazon and its marketplace could be called “fashion”? In some ways, the company seems to be in retreat from any fashion ambitions. Last year, for example, both of its Amazon Style locations closed, following reviews that the stores weren’t conducive to discovery. The company has also renamed its Prime Wardrobe option, which once offered a styling service, to the more descriptive, if mundane, “Try Before You Buy.”

Amazon’s online site seems best suited to practical clothing purchases, rather than shopping for higher-end fashion, but it doesn’t have to be that way, according to Lara Ewen, senior editor at sister publication Fashion Dive. This month we sat down with her to explore what’s happening – and what’s not – at Amazon Fashion.

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