Amazon Australia Could Be Delayed Until 2018, Insider Claims



At a recent industry event in Melbourne, the official launch date of Amazon Australia was again speculated on and the news isn’t good for Christmas shoppers. According to market research firm Kantar Retail, we could be in for an even longer wait than we thought.

By most reports, Amazon Australia seemed like it would launch in time for Black Friday. The biggest sales day of the year came and went and still, we couldn’t access Amazon’s Australian site.

We’ve received word that Amazon was planning to go live on November 24, but a few technical hiccups got in the way, forcing the launch to be postponed.

According to an industry source, Amazon Australia’s testing phase has encountered a few calculation errors resulting in the false start we saw last week.

Speaking at a WPP Client Education Event event in Melbourne on November 29, Jason Mahoney, Managing Director ANZ of market research firm Kantar Retail, revealed that the reason for Amazon’s “failed” launch last week was due to glitches in its backend.

During his presentation, Mahoney noted that he was expecting a 2017 launch, but only if it happens in the next week or so. Otherwise, he suspects they may pull the pin on going live this year.

Of course, Amazon Australia are yet to reveal any solid details about their plans and if there were issues in the backend they’re not likely to speak out about them, simply ironing them out as they go and launching if and when they’re ready. It’s also worth noting that Kantar Retail do not represent Amazon directly.

I reached out to Mahoney for confirmation this morning but have yet to receive a reply. I’ve also reached out to Amazon for comment, but have currently received no word from them. We’ll update this post when we hear back.