Amazon Preps Brazilian Fulfillment And Delivery Network

Amazon is getting ready to launch the fulfillment and delivery network it has long been eyeing in Brazil, reported Reuters.

Citing Amazon Country Manager Brazil Alex Szapiro, Reuters reported that the launch was delayed because of logistics and a complex tax system but now it plans to directly sell merchandise in 11 categories from more than 800 suppliers, including L’Oreal and Black & Decker.

“We are launching (our direct sales platform) with 320,000 different products in stock, including 200,000 books,” Szapiro told Reuters. “Our obsession is always to increase this catalog and to have everything Brazilian consumers seek and want to buy on the internet.”

Reuters had reported in November that it was having challenges in launching its Fulfillment by Amazon program in Brazil, citing the tax system, logistics and less than stellar relationships with some of the leading vendors in the country. “As in every negotiation, you take a seat at a table and you want to agree on the best possible terms,” the executive told Reuters in response to a question about the relationships with suppliers.

Amazon has been in the Brazilian market since 2012 hawking e-readers, books, and streaming movies. In October of 2017, it started opening up its website to third-party merchants selling electronics. Amazon leased a 505,904 square foot warehouse in a town outside of Sao Paulo as part of its fulfillment efforts in the country. Szapiro wouldn’t tell Reuters how much Amazon is investing in the distribution center or how many it will employ. He did tell Reuters that Amazon employs both directly or indirectly more than 1,400 people in the country.

News that the eCommerce giant was gearing up to finally launch the fulfillment network in Brazil prompted at least one analyst to express optimism about Amazon’s prospects. According to Reuters, BTG Pactual, the investment bank, said the direct sales launch in Brazil shows Amazon is ready to “strengthen investments, potentially via more partnerships with fulfillment operators and last-mile carriers.”