Amazon has confirmed plans to set up a fulfilment centre in Melbourne’s southeastern suburbs as it pushes forward with rolling out its full retail performance in Australia. The retail giant also announced it will appoint an executive from its German operations to run Amazon Australia. Rocco Braeuniger, manager of consumables in Amazon.de, will assume the role of state manager for Amazon.com.au in the coming months, a spokeswoman said.
The eCommerce juggernaut said today it will set up its first Australian fulfilment centre in the personal Pellicano Property’s M2 Industry Park at Dandenong South – a move previously flagged by The Australian. The projected 24,000 square metre warehouse is close to key streets including the South Gippsland Highway, Monash Highway and EastLink. The lease was brokered by CBRE’s Industrial and Logistics team.
Amazon’s looming rollout is set to add pressure on local retailers and retail landlords, already grappling with careful customers in an era of slow wage growth. Amazon is recruiting for functions including operations supervisors, pickers, packers, systems technicians and HR staff.
Amazon’s director of operations for Australia stated countless new jobs would be created in Dandenong South, and not just in infrastructure and general plumbing services. That is just the beginning. Robert Bruce said that over time, they’ll bring thousands of new jobs to Australia and millions of dollars of investment in addition to opening up the chance for thousands of Australian companies to sell at home and abroad via Amazon Marketplace using Amazon’s integrated asset management.
The center will stock hundreds of thousands of products for delivery across Australia, he said, adding that offering low costs are a focus. Victorian Industry Minister Wade Noonan said the move would create retail opportunities for tens of thousands of local businesses, including for those infrastructure like drake low loaders and crane hire companies. US online retail giant Amazon has announced plans to open its first major Australian warehouse in suburban Melbourne, which it says will use hundreds of people.
Amazon is now two times as big as Walmart, which was the world’s biggest retailer. It’s seen by many Australian merchants as a “Death Star”. Analysts at financial services company Morgan Stanley forecast its arrival in Australia will have a “profound” impact on the industry, and pose a significant threat to established retailers like Wesfarmers, Woolworths and Myer. Last month, Amazon chief executive Jeff Bezos temporarily became the world’s richest man, according to Forbes magazine’s wealth tracker, but Microsoft founder Bill Gates soon reclaimed the lead.
Mr Bezos, who also owns The Washington Post paper through a holding company, has an estimated net worth of about $US90 billion ($113 billion). The e-commerce giant formally announced the place on Thursday, after speculation last month the industrial area was chosen after a number warehouse, logistics and distribution jobs were advertised online.
The company said it would “start recruiting instantly” for a selection of roles including operations supervisors, pickers, packers, quality management system technicians and HR specialists. Robert Bruce, Amazon’s director of operations for Australia said in a statement, is thrilled to be producing hundreds of new jobs in Dandenong South.
This new fulfilment facility will stock thousands and thousands of products that will be available for shipping to clients across Australia and transferred into the store by the largest crane hire once they start their retail offering, according to Mr Bruce. They’ll be focusing on supplying their Australian clients low prices on a terrific choice of merchandise.
In a statement, Victorian Industry Minister Wade Noonan stated Amazon was the newest global organization to choose Victoria because of its Australian operations. The organization’s decision to locate its center in Dandenong South source locals for gas installations and commercial plumbing services will create hundreds of local jobs and open up retail opportunities for tens of thousands of local companies.
Amazon Web Services found locally in 2012 and Amazon launched a Kindle Store on Amazon.com.au in 2013. Amazon currently has nearly 1000 employees in Australia. Earlier this year, Morgan Stanley cautioned that the “Amazon Effect” would wipe $800 million in the earnings of recorded chains such as JB Hi-Fi and Harvey Norman, but said the biggest hit is to Wesfarmers.
The retail giant, which owns Target and Kmart, could lose more than $428 million in earnings from 2026. The report said department stores are the industry’s worst hit, as Amazon produces around $12 billion in sales by 2026.
