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Tag: Amazon Fulfillment Center

  • Amazon To Open Another Fulfillment Center In Washington

    Amazon began its life in Washington state in 1994. Since then, the online retailer has set up shop in numerous states and countries around the world. Now the retailer is returning home bringing with it jobs and a new warehouse.

    Amazon announced this morning that it will be opening a new 1 million-square-foot fulfillment center in Kent, Washington this year. The new fulfillment center will be the fourth in the state with two already existing in Summer and Bellevue, and one in DuPont nearing completion.

    The new fulfillment center in Kent will focus on small items such as “books, electronics and consumer goods.”

    “We’re excited to bring hundreds of great full-time jobs with benefits to Kent and proud to further invest in Washington state with this new fulfillment center,” said Mike Roth, Amazon’s vice president of North America operations. “We are grateful to local and state elected officials who have supported Amazon in bringing a new fulfillment center to the state of Washington.”

    As always, a new fulfillment center means state officials are going to pay themselves on the back:

    “Amazon’s expansion is great news for the people who will be working in the hundreds of great jobs there, as well as for all of Washington,” said Governor Jay Inslee. “Amazon is a marquee company for how Washington innovation can change the world.”

    Heck, even the Washington State Department of Commerce gets into the self-congratulatory back patting:

    “Amazon’s latest expansion of their hometown footprint, bringing so many great jobs, is extremely important to help grow and diversify the Kent Valley economy,” said Brian Bonlender, director for the Washington State Department of Commerce. “The company’s decision also highlights the numerous advantages that attract and keep world-class employers in Washington State, including a highly competitive business climate, well-educated workforce and outstanding quality of life. We are proud that Amazon continues to invest in our state and look forward to supporting their growth.”

    Despite my cynicism, new fulfillment centers are generally a great thing. Amazon will be creating hundreds of decent paying jobs in the area. Full-time employees at the fulfillment center not only get a decent wage and healthcare, but programs like Career Choice as well. The program pays up to 95 percent of an employee’s tuition for them to pursue any career they like, even if it takes them away from Amazon.

    If you want to know more, check out the Amazon Fulfillment Web site.

    Image via Amazon

  • Fulfillment by Amazon Launched in Canada

    Fulfillment by Amazon Launched in Canada

    Amazon today announced that it has launched the Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) program for amazon.ca. The service provides third-party sellers access to Amazon’s fulfillment and customer service resources. Sellers who use the program can have Amazon pack and ship their products, and even offer their customers Amazon benefits such as Super Saver Shipping and easy returns.

    “Fulfillment by Amazon is a win-win for Canadian customers and businesses,” said Steve Oliver, director of Amazon.ca. “Customers will benefit from an even greater selection of items with free shipping and a trusted experience, while businesses can take advantage of our world-class fulfillment services and focus their efforts on growing their business.”

    Sellers must have a registered account with FBA to begin using its services. After uploading and managing their listings, an FBA logo will appear next to their products. Products stored at Amazon fulfillment centers can be packed and shipped without much hassle for the seller. The service also provides metrics tools for sellers to track their inventory and sales.

    “Since we launched FBA in the U.S., we’ve heard from sellers that offering customers a consistent experience and free shipping through FBA helps them increase their sales and grow their businesses,” said Tom Taylor, vice president of FBA. “We love doing the heavy lifting for sellers and helping them grow, so we’re excited to make FBA available in Canada as we head into the busy holiday season.”

  • Amazon Opens Indiana Facility: 1000 New Jobs!

    Seattle-based Amazon.Com is making another $150 million investment in Indiana. Jeffersonville, Indiana will be the site of a new warehouse fulfillment center that will create over one thousand new jobs throughout the next couple of years.

    Southeast Indiana is a hotbed for the distribution and shipping industries and has over a billion tons of freight traveling through it each year. The newest addition to the Indian workforce was made possible in part from tax credits and training grants offered by the state to Amazon.

    Mark Robinson, president of the River Ridge Development Authority, where the facility will be built, comments on the addition of Amazon to the area:

    “We are very excited to have a corporate citizen like Amazon here at the River Ridge Commerce Center. Their presence here is further testament of River Ridge being the Midwest’s premier development site,”

    Jeffersonville Mayor Mike Moore also expressed a degree of excitement about the new facility:

    “We are extremely excited to have Amazon join our business community,”

    “An addition like this shows Jeffersonville is at the forefront of a national rebound.”

    Governor Mitch Daniels adds to the sentiment:

    “This is Amazon’s fifth Indiana facility, and the company is employing thousands of Hoosiers. We’re grateful for every one of those jobs,”

    “These facilities will serve customers across the country, further cementing Indiana’s position as the country’s logistics capital.”

    So the economy seems to be doing really well in Indiana, I don’t know if job growth is coming along so well in the rest of the country. Positions at the facility will begin being filled as soon as this fall. Once the building is complete, Amazon will occupy over four million square feet in the state.