Amazon has sought global growth in recent years as it continues to dominate e-Commerce in the U.S., expanding its business to regions such as India, China and the Middle East with varying degrees of success. Now, the online giant will venture Down Under.
Amazon will ship goods from its first Australian warehouse in Melbourne ahead of the holiday season, and will open up its e-Commerce site and marketplace service even sooner. Rocco Braeuniger, Amazon’s manager of Australian operations, revealed the news to more than 600 third-party merchants at the Amazon Seller Summit in Sydney, where he promoted the Fulfillment by Amazon program.
Amazon has not named a specific launch date yet, nor has it revealed what delivery services Australian consumers should expect. Third-party merchants will pay a $49.95 monthly fee to sell through the Amazon marketplace, in addition to a “referral fee,” ranging from 6% to 15% of each transaction depending on the product sold.
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Australians can already buy Amazon products from offshore, but having a local warehouse would cut international shipping costs. Until now, Amazon’s presence in Australia has been limited to selling Kindle devices and e-books, AWS (Amazon Web Services) and Amazon Prime Video.
The Australia expansion will not include grocery items. Amazon has had a tough enough time expanding its grocery capabilities in the U.S., recently scaling back its AmazonFresh delivery business in nine states.
