Amazon to Open Two Bookstores in Denver, Could Buy a Movie Theater Chain
Brick and mortar retail is dead, they say – so dead that Amazon continues to open bookstores, and is now rumored to be bidding on a small chain of movie theaters.
Business Den reports that Amazon has chosen a second location for an Amazon Books in the Denver region.
Amazon has settled on a spot in Cherry Creek for its bookstore.
The online retail giant plans to open Amazon Books on the ground floor of Financial House, the eight-story office building under construction at the northwest corner of 2nd Avenue and Detroit Street, according to tenant finish permit applications submitted to the city.
The company will occupy the building’s sole retail unit, which is approximately 5,000 square feet.
When rumors first broke about Amazon opening a bookstore in Denver, the location was said to be in Cherry Creek. A few months later Amazon announced they would open an Amazon Books in a different part of Denver, but now it seems the earliest rumors were true all along.
When it opens, the second Denver Amazon Books location will be either the 19th or 20th Amazon Books store.
That will hardly be a newsworthy event; however, the same cannot be said for today’s other rumors.
Bloomberg says Amazon is looking to acquire Landmark Theaters.
Amazon is in the running to acquire Landmark Theaters, a move that would vault the e-commerce giant into the brick-and-mortar cinema industry, according to people familiar with the situation.
The company is vying with other suitors to acquire the business from Wagner/Cuban Cos., which is backed by billionaire Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. The chain’s owners have been working with investment banker Stephens Inc. on a possible sale, the people said. No final decisions have been made, and talks could still fall apart.
Pushing into movie theaters would follow Amazon’s expansion into myriad other forms of media, including a film and TV studio and music service. With Landmark, it gets a chain focused on independent and foreign films with more than 50 theaters in 27 markets, including high-profile locations in New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Landmark’s theaters are known for art-house fare, and some high-end locations include coffee bars or lounges, setting them apart from the typical movie experience.
Landmark is a relatively small chain whose purchase matters less for the market share than for how Amazon might use it.
If Amazon owned Landmark it could bid on movie projects and make the promise that the film would be shown in theaters. Amazon might also offer free movie tickets as a benefit of Amazon Prime, thus encouraging more consumers to sign up.
In financial terms, this deal is chump change, but the indirect effect could be huge.
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