While online retailing giant has failed to give a specific date on when it will launch in Australia, Australian Country Manager, Rocco Braeuniger, has said the launch is “getting really, really, really close”.
While general expectation is that Amazon will start taking in orders in Australia before Christmas, there are some predictions that the company is targeting the Black Friday or Cyber Monday shopping bonanzas of November 24 and 27 respectively.
And while there are still some concerns around what Amazon’s presence will mean for retailers, both bricks and mortar and digital, Braeuniger did confirm that the company will launch with dual platforms. Amazon will be selling its own products, which will initially come out of its first warehouse in Melbourne’s Dandenong South, but it will also launch with its ‘Amazon Marketplace’ platform, which allows third-party retailers to list and price their own products.
Speaking at a suppliers’ summit in Sydney earlier this week, Braeuniger said: “We have the long-term ambition to be successful and to earn the trust of Australian companies and the Australian customer.
“We will be focusing on listening to the Australian customer, inventing on behalf of the Australian customer and delivering a great customer experience.”
The Amazon Marketplace model allows retailers to list their products for a monthly fee and a commission based on the product category and with Braeuniger saying that “more than half of Amazon products are sold over Marketplace”, there is scope for Australian retailers to benefit from Amazon’s increased presence in Australia.
Australian Retailers Association’s Executive Director Russell Zimmerman encouraged retailers to get on-board with Amazon, rather than fearing what it could mean.
“Contrary to what industry observers have predicted, the majority of Australian SME retailers see Amazon as an opportunity for growth, rather than a threat,” he said.
“We believe Amazon’s marketplace can benefit many SME retailers, increase their sales and enhance the overall level of service in the industry.
“The biggest growth at the moment in retail sales is coming off online, so this is the right time to be putting out an Amazon.”
And despite some concerns that Amazon could set prices that are too low for other retailers to compete against, last week TheShout reported that the ACCC said this does not breach competition laws and in fact welcomed Amazon to Australia.