Amazon has announced plans to build its first Belgian delivery hub in Antwerp. This way, the e-commerce giant wants to take control of deliveries – and send a message to its Dutch competitor bol.com.
Local fulfilment centre
The fulfilment centre will open at the end of this year in Antwerp’s new Blue Gate area. Amazon is aiming to increase its delivery capacity to meet rising demands, Belgian newspaper De Standaard reports. The centre will supply parcels to small and medium-sized local delivery companies, both independent and existing partners.
Last November, De Standaard had already revealed that Amazon was planning to build its own logistical network in Belgium and was looking for independent couriers in Belgium. Former state postal service bpost currently is Amazon’s logistical partner in Belgium, but it will face tough competition from this autumn. Amazon will also manage the sorting centre, preparing parcels from fulfilment centres in other countries to be delivered in the area around Antwerp (which, as Het Nieuwsblad points out, may also include a part of the Netherlands).
The new fulfilment centre would create some 250 jobs: 50 directly and 200 delivery drivers – both independent and employed by a logistical company. Robert Viegers, Director at Amazon Logistics Europe, guarantees that his company will continue to work with its current partners. Amazon is just making sure that it can complement existing partners with new solutions for the last mile, Vliegers concludes.
