Amazon on hiring spree for South African marketplace

Amazon is currently advertising 50 full-time positions and one seasonal job opening in South Africa, with several of the roles related to its plans to launch a marketplace in the country.

The online retail giant is looking for a customer service lead for its South African operations, a B-BBEE senior programme manager, a transportation and fulfilment manager, and several vendor and supply chain-related roles.

On 17 October 2023, the international e-commerce giant announced it would launch Amazon.co.za in 2024, allowing South African merchants to reach customers nationwide.

In its announcement, Amazon said more than 60% of sales in its stores are from independent sellers, mostly small and medium-sized businesses.

“Starting today, independent sellers in South Africa can register their businesses on the [Amazon seller portal],” it stated.

Robert Koen, Amazon’s general manager for the Sub-Saharan Africa region, said the company looks forward to launching in South Africa.

“[We look forward to] providing local sellers, brand owners, and entrepreneurs — small and large — the opportunity to grow their business with Amazon, and delivering great value and a convenient shopping experience for customers across South Africa,” he said.

Amazon had previously planned to launch its South African marketplace in February 2023. However, its plans were postponed due to “uncertain and difficult economies”.

Sources close to Amazon’s South African operations said the e-commerce giant had halted its plans for a Nigerian marketplace launch but would continue with its plans for South Africa.

However, the launch was pushed back due to the challenging business environment.

Before its launch announcement, Amazon remained silent on what was one of the worst-kept secrets in the e-commerce industry.

In June 2022, leaked documents revealed Amazon’s plans to launch a marketplace in South Africa under the codename “Project Fela”.

In late May 2023, a document on Amazon’s Carrier Central webpage for South Africa revealed that Amazon plans on having at least one fulfilment centre in Johannesburg and another in Cape Town.

The company also started advertising marketplace-related positions in South Africa in August 2022.

Amazon will compete directly against other South African e-commerce players like Takealot, Makro, and Bob Shop.

The table below summarises some of the latest positions available at Amazon in South Africa. The number of open posts per category is provided in brackets.

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