SYDNEY – Amazon.com Inc’s (AMZN.O) Australian arm began an order-taking trial on Thursday, giving life to the hype which has preceded its arrival in the world’s No. 12 economy and weighed on the shares of the brick-and-mortar retail sector.
The trial kicked off at 3 p.m. (0400 GMT) with the Amazon Australia website’s search box filling in product names automatically.
A representative for Amazon, which has never given a start date for Australia, declined to comment.
“It’s obviously working because auto-population is there,” said Liz Cassidy, founder of Amazon-registered beauty products retailer Third Sigma.
Ms Cassidy, who already sells product overseas via Amazon, said she had made no Australian sales in the first hour, but noted that the trial involved a limited number of shoppers.
Australia has long had Amazon-registered sellers but they have been limited to sending goods offshore as Amazon had no warehouse in the country. Until now, Australians have had to wait long periods and pay sizable shipping costs for deliveries.
While online vendors are excited about the opportunities, Australia’s more traditional shopkeepers have faced pressure to convince investors they can compete against the US giant since it confirmed its plans for Australia in April.
