Amazon.com has announced an agreement to acquire US online shoe retailer Zappos.com in a deal worth $807 million (£488.6 million) in stock.
The deal will see Amazon buy all of the outstanding Zappos shares and provide $40 million (£24.2 million) in cash and restricted stock units to the retailer's employees.
It says that the acquisition is expected to be completed this autumn and Zappos will continue to run in the same way as at present, with no changes to be made to its management or headquarters.
Amazon already sells shoes through its own website.
"Zappos is a customer focused company. We see great opportunities for both companies to learn from each other and create even better experiences for our customers," comments Jeff Bezos, founder and chief executive of Amazon.
In a letter to employees, Tony Hsieh, chief executive of Zappos, says that the transaction will offer the company a "faster" way of realising its vision of satisfying customers, employees and vendors.
Zappos was founded in 1999 and is known for its extensive use of social media to interact with consumers, as well as its customer friendly initiatives such as free delivery in both directions and a 365-day returns policy.
It had more than five million unique visitors in June, according to Compete.
