Amazon’s Kindle, which has seen great sales leaps with the recent price slashes – not to mention updated models – is expanding its retail presence through office supply giant Staples. Staples will start selling the devices at its more than 1,500 U.S. stores starting this fall.
Amazon’s strategy is to counter the advantage Barnes & Noble and Apple have since the latter two companies operate their own stores. The Kindle’s greatest drawback has been the inability of the public to handle the product – something many people will want if they are going to pluck down hundreds of dollars. This is the second retail location deal for Amazon.com – the first was with Target, where the Kindle is now available.
It is estimated that Amazon has sold over 5 million Kindle’s since its introduction in 2007. Apple’s iPad has been selling a million a month, while the B&N Nook has sold over 1 million units. The eReader segment is growing fast, and Amazon has been working furiously to grow Kindle sales since they (finally) received competition in the marketplace.