Local businesses stocking up on sought-after items like cleaning supplies and technology appear to be flocking to a procurement website set up by the world’s biggest e-commerce company.
Amazon Business Australia started a year ago, directly competing against market stalwarts Officeworks, Bunnings and JB Hi-Fi.
Orders soared 155 per cent in the second half of its launch year, compared to the first six months, and tens of thousands of businesses have registered, placing hundreds of thousands of orders.
“When we were launching, we had a lot of hopes for how the business was going to be received by Australian businesses,” Amazon Business Australia country manager Lena Zak told AAP.
It has already launched in 10 countries, with more than eight million businesses shopping on the website globally.
“But of course, it’s always a little bit different in Australia, and so we’ve been really, really delighted to have such a fantastic first year in market,” Ms Zak said.
The website serves customers from all sectors, including technology, education, health care and hospitality, and of all sizes – from sole traders to enterprise and government organisations.
“Really, anybody who needs to buy anything to keep their business running,” Ms Zak said.
Its top categories are technology and electronics, office products, cleaning and industrial supplies, Amazon Australia says.
Bestsellers include breakroom and cleaning supplies, beverages, paper products and tech accessories.
More than 14,000 Australian sellers have marketed their goods on the website, which has just added Carnival Cruise Line’s Australian operations as a major customer.
Amazon Business had been rolling out analytic tools to track customer savings from bulk buying over time and to compare purchases, Ms Zak said.
Many Australian businesses have very traditional, manual processes for managing their purchasing and procurement activities, such as paper or spreadsheets.
Amazon Business research shows Australian companies spend an average of $257,736 a year and nine hours a week managing procurement activities.
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