An Amazon warehouse in Warrington, England.
Nathan Stirk | Getty Images
Amazon has submitted plans for a large-format store near Chicago that would be larger than a Walmart Supercenter, marking the latest experiment with physical retail for the tech company.
As part of the plans, Amazon has proposed building a one-story, 229,000-square-foot building in Orland Park, Illinois, that would offer a range of products, such as groceries, household essentials and general merchandise, the city said on Saturday. By comparison, Walmart’s U.S. Supercenters typically average 179,000 square feet.
The Amazon facility would also include a “limited warehouse component” to support on-site operations and space for delivery drivers to pick up orders, according to planning documents.
“We regularly test new experiences designed to make customers’ lives better and easier every day, including physical stores,” an Amazon spokesperson said in a statement. “The site in question is our planned location for a new concept that we think customers will be excited about.”
The e-commerce company has been determined to have a bigger presence in brick-and-mortar retail after stealing market share from incumbents. Amazon acquired upscale grocer Whole Foods Market for $13.7 billion in 2017, the largest deal in its history.
Amazon also launched bookstores, shopping mall kiosks, apparel stores, convenience marts and its own supermarket chain. It’s since scrapped many of those concepts or slowed the rollout of new locations.
The Orland Park Plan Commission approved Amazon’s proposal on Tuesday, and it will now proceed to a vote from the full village board. That meeting is scheduled for Jan. 19.
The proposed facility would replace a local restaurant, Petey’s II, which closed in January 2024. The site sits at the corner of two major highways running through Orland Park, and would be down the street from a Target, Costco and Trader Joe’s, among other major national chains.
Some residents have pushed back on Amazon’s planned development, expressing concerns over how it could impact traffic in the surrounding area, NBC 5 Chicago reported.
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