The e-commerce giant will focus on local and sustainable products to attract Belgian consumers.
Often criticized for its dramatic working conditions in the United States, its very aggressive pricing policy and its sometimes disastrous inventory management, Amazon intends to present a completely different face to Belgian consumers.
The e-commerce giant set up in Belgium this year. With more than 150 employees in Brussels and 50 in Antwerp, the city chosen for the management of its stocks, Amazon is thinking big. Very large even since the American company intends to develop local trade by allowing a multitude of small local players to launch internationally. Because if the opening of Amazon.com.be, its new totally Belgian portal, is a small event in itself for Belgian consumers, it also opens up new possibilities for companies, which will be able to use Amazon’s infrastructure to sell their products to Belgian consumers but also abroad.
“The arrival of Amazon in Belgium opens the doors to new markets for local businesses” explained Eva Faict, the Country Manager of Amazon Belgium, during an exclusive interview.
Traditionally, going international represents a huge challenge for an SME. Amazon greatly simplifies the process. Once registered on the site, local sellers can simply check off the countries they are willing to ship to. “We make everything much easier for them.”
On its new Belgian portal, the e-commerce giant has inaugurated a “Belgian brands” section in which we find a whole series of specialties and products made in Belgium, now also exportable abroad through the e-commerce platform. There are brands like Edgar Cooper, Côté d’Or, Kambukka and Serax. Amazon wants to position itself as an engine for local commerce.
Another ambition of the Belgian division: to get rid of the ultra-consumerist image carried by its parent company. The Belgian subsidiary recalls that since 2015, Amazon has reduced the weight of packaging by more than 38% and has practically completely banned plastic. The plastic air cushions, for example, have been replaced by 100% recycled paper padding. In Belgium, more than anywhere else, the e-commerce giant intends to rely on 100% recycled packaging to present a younger image.
And then of course there is the promise of the biggest online store on the planet, with instant access to more than 180 million products, 4 million of which can be delivered in less than 24 hours, with “local” payment options as well. , such as Bancontact. As for communication, the Belgian branch of Amazon also intends to surf the local market, with new promotions for typically Belgian holidays such as Saint Nicolas.
If the arrival of Amazon on the Belgian e-commerce market worries local players, there is no doubt that the company might also have a leverage effect on the entire sector. Although Belgium is one of the countries with the highest GDP in Europe, it still lags behind in the field of e-commerce. The Belgian spends little online. The arrival of a big name in e-commerce might therefore lead new consumers to turn to the Internet to do their shopping.
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