Amazon’s operations are shaping up Down Under

Amazon’s Australian online store is one step closer to launching.



In addition to announcing the site of its first Australian warehouse, the online giant also named a German executive as its country manager. Both moves indicate that Amazon is preparing to launch its online store in the world's 12th-biggest economy, according to Reuters.



The new distribution facility will be located outside the country’s second-biggest city, Melbourne. The warehouse is expected to encompass 93,000 square m (Australian).



The location was chosen for its proximity to Australia's east coast, where about four-fifths of the country's 24 million population lives. The depot will stock "hundreds of thousands of products for delivery to customers across Australia,” Amazon’s director of operations Robert Bruce, said in the report.



By adding a dedicated fulfillment center, Australian shoppers can now buy merchandise locally, rather than place orders on Amazon’s Marketplace — a global marketplace for third-party sellers. Currently, more than 1,000 Australian companies sell their wares on the platform. This process also forced shoppers to wait nine to 12 days for orders to arrive via standard shipping, and pay hefty shipping rates, according to The Seattle Times.



The move also sets the stage for a showdown with Australia's en-trenched retail establishment, such as Myer and JB HiFi. Besides putting new pressure on the country's brick-and-mortar retailers to protect their sales, it could also impact relationships with labor unions, Reuters said.



Further bolstering its Australian operation, Amazon appointed Rocco Braeuniger to the role of Australian country manager. He was previously the online retailer’s director of consumables for its operations in Germany. Employees of Amazon's German unit striked in December over pay and conditions, the report said.



There is no set launch date for the Australian online store. Amazon also has not yet revealed any plans to introduce its subscriber-based Amazon Prime service in the country, Reuters said.