It’s one of the internet’s biggest shopping sites, and now it’s also an actual store in Manhattan — but only for a few days (until the 29th). In a clear marketing strategy, eBay is hoping to draw attention during the big shopping days around Thanksgiving with a shop located next to Bergdorf Goodman at East 57th Street and 5th Avenue. It covers more than 5,000 square feet of space and is laid out like the website, divided into categories.
There are over 200 million listings every day on the company’s website, and while most of the sales are the result of auctions, the “buy it now” option is increasingly popular, especially for the brand-new items. So at the new shop nothing is actually for sale — customers must use the computer terminals and still do the shopping online. If anyone likes what they see on display at the store, a personal shopper will help them find it online.
As the Big Apple becomes invaded by tourists for its Thanksgiving parade and the shopping extravaganza of the upcoming days, eBay couldn’t have come up with a more creative marketing strategy to capitalize on potential buyers looking for the best deals. But this could also be an experiment that may lead to the opening of a permanent shop in New York or in another major city. And with this being New York, the eBay store could just turn out to be a tourist attraction much like the Apple Store on Fifth Avenue has become…

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