Amazon.com, Inc. announced it will open a new fulfillment center in Kansas City. The new large-sized fulfillment center will create more than 1,000 jobs. The U.S. e-commerce giant is investing a significant amount to improve its shipping and warehouse operations. Additionally, the company announced that it will open a staffed pickup location at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Last month, Amazon announced that it will open two new fulfillment centers in Edwardsville, Illinois. The two facilities will create more than 1,000 full-time jobs. In May, the e-commerce company announced plans to open a second fulfillment center in Joliet, Illinois. The company’s existing facility in Joliet has 1,500 full-time employees. The new 700,000 square-foot facility in the city will create more than 2,000 full-time jobs.
New Kansas City Facility
The online retailer plans to build a new 855,000-plus-square-foot fulfillment center in Kansas City. The facility will be used to to ship smaller customer items, such as books, electronics and toys. The company did not disclose how much money it will spend on this new fulfillment center.
Akash Chauhan, Amazon’s vice president of North American operations, said: “We are thrilled to continue investing in Kansas, proud of our ability to create great jobs, and most importantly, excited to better serve our customers throughout the Midwest.”
“Together with the addition of the Kansas City and the Edgerton fulfillment centers, there will be 2,000 new Amazon jobs in Kansas and none of this would be have been possible without the support we’ve received from state and community leaders,” Chauhan added.
First Pickup Location at University of Illinois
Amazon.com, Inc. said that it will open its first staffed pickup location in Illinois.
The company has signed an agreement with the University of Illinois to build a 2,200-square-foot staffed pickup location, called [email protected], in the Illini Union Bookstore on the university campus.
[email protected] will offer students, staff and faculty members a pickup location to get their merchandise ordered through Amazon. They can pick up and return orders from this location centrally located on campus. Amazon Prime members will receive free same-day pickup for orders placed by noon and free one-day pickup for orders placed by 10 PM.
The new pickup location is scheduled for opening this fall.
The company already have staffed pickup locations at different universities including Purdue University, University of Massachusetts Amherst and University of California, Berkeley, among others. In 2016, the company plans to open more locations at The Georgia Institute of Technology and California State University, Long Beach.
For Amazon, Illinois Is Great Place To Do Business
Earlier, the e-commerce company announced plans to open two new fulfillment centers in Edwardsville, Illinois. The new centers will span more than 700,000 square-feet each. One facility will process orders for larger items like big-screen televisions, sports equipment or kayaks, while the other will handle smaller items such as books, toys and electronics.
“Illinois has been a great place to do business for Amazon and we look forward to adding two additional fulfillment centers and creating another 1,000 full-time jobs with benefits on day one in the state,” stated Akash Chauhan, vice president of North American operations at Amazon.
“The elected officials throughout the city and state have been very supportive of Amazon and we thank them for helping make this possible. We’re excited to soon call Edwardsville home and become an active member of this vibrant community,” Chauhan added.
Shares of Amazon.com, Inc. have gained nearly 70% during the past 12 months.
