Amazon Australia Country Manager, Rocco Braeuniger, has rejected claims the local retail industry is in “recession”, contrasting the remarks of premium department store, David Jones’, South African owners.
Speaking to The Australian, Mr Braeuniger asserts his local business has been booming, with record demand for its e-commerce division and Amazon Prime streaming service:
“No, I’m not seeing that [recession], but on the other hand we are just such an incredibly small part of the retail business, anywhere in the world actually, but we are not seeing that and I cannot comment on what David Jones said.”
Braeuniger asserts Amazon Australia’s growth rates are “magnificent”, however, there are “a lot of things to do.”
The news follows the debut of Amazon Launchpad, an ‘incubator’ which assists local start-ups with their online sales, logistics and marketing, offers a dedicated page presence and more.
The Launchpad section on Amazon.com.au features a strong tech section, including several emerging “homegrown brands” capitalising on smart home growth.
As previously reported, Amazon claims its recent Prime Day sale surpassed all previous Australian sales events, with a record number of Prime shoppers.
The news comes as more Australian retailers ramp up their digital capabilities in the fight against Amazon Australia (e.g. JB Hi-Fi, Wesfarmers, Officeworks, Woolworths Holdings etc).
Some commentators claim the e-tailer still has some way to go before it catches up to traditional retailers in terms of price competition, however, a looming threat remains.
[Amazon Australia Launchpad]
