Amazon is looking to strengthen its grip on the online retail industry by featuring items on its site from well-known stores such as Lord & Taylor and Neiman Marcus, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.
Citing “people familiar with the talks,” the Journal said Amazon is working with a group of about 10 retailers, including Abercrombie & Fitch, J. Crew and Ralph Lauren, to list their brands on the online mecca’s website.
The links would direct shoppers to each individual retailer’s website, according to the report. Amazon would make money by charging a fee for sending customers to the retailers’ sites, and collect another payment for subsequent purchases.
(Read more: Online shopping satisfaction hits 12-year low)
Amazon would also gain leverage from the deal by obtaining data on a new bout of customers.
Both Amazon and Abercrombie & Fitch told CNBC they had no comment on the report. The other retailers mentioned above did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Read more: Forget Amazon, this may be the new hot retail stock)
If a deal shakes out, it would be the latest step in Amazon’s quest to beef up its apparel offerings. The online retailer announced in 2012 that it would be making a push toward more high-fashion labels, and sells designer brands such as Calvin Klein, Rebecca Minkoff and BCBG Max Azria.
It could also potentially give a boost to the web operations of traditional brick-and-mortar shops.
(Read more: 7 ways designers are battling cheap knockoffs)
According to the report, the tie-ups could begin this summer.
To read the complete report from The Wall Street Journal, click here.
—By CNBC’s Krystina Gustafson. Follow her on Twitter @KrystinaGustafs.
