Amazon plans to turn a commercial office building on a central and “fashionable” Berlin street into a fulfillment warehouse as part of a plan to offer the city’s Prime subscribers two-hour delivery, according to a published report.
Die Welt, a German newspaper, broke the story. Citing anonymous sources with knowledge of the plan, Die Welt said that Amazon plans to begin offering two-hour delivery sometime in May. Until now, Amazon’s German operations has relied on Deutsche Post’s DHL parcel service for deliveries.
But Amazon has signaled to delivery companies across the globe that the company is interested in delivering more of its own packages to customers doors. The retailer has leased jets, hired cargo vessels and has sought permission to drive longer delivery vans on US roads. The company has offered one and two-hour delivery in certain areas of the United States.
Some have speculated that Amazon will eventually compete against DHL, UPS and Fedex. Amazon has said it only wants to supplement the package delivery companies.
Germany is an important market for Amazon. The country’s economy has blossomed in the past several years and Die Welt says that Amazon accounts for 25 percent of online retail sales there.
