Amazon Plans New Walmart-Like Supercenter in Orland Park

Amazon is expanding its physical retail footprint with a new supercenter concept, resembling a Walmart-style store. The Orland Park Plan Commission in Illinois approved a proposal for Amazon to develop a 35-acre site into a 229,000-square-foot retail hub, including a grocery store, general merchandise, and prepared foods.

This development will also serve as an Amazon fulfillment center, combining shopping and order pickup in one location. Customers will have the convenience of browsing the store and collecting Amazon orders from behind the scenes, similar to a department store with a large warehouse back-end.

This proposed project marks a significant effort by Amazon to re-enter brick-and-mortar retail, despite having closed several stores in recent years. In 2022, Amazon shuttered all 68 of its physical bookstores, 4-star locations, and Pop Up shops. In 2023, it also closed its Amazon Style clothing stores. Currently, Amazon’s physical store focus is primarily on Whole Foods Market, which it acquired in 2017.

While Amazon has stepped back from many brick-and-mortar ventures, this new supercenter indicates its ongoing interest in physical retail spaces.

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