06 Mar 2015
Amazon opening up UK distribution centre for guided tours
BY Tom Anstey
Amazon is turning one of its distribution centres in the UK into a tourist attraction by giving visitors behind-the-scenes of its giant facility in the Midlands.
The online retail giant, has signed up its Rugeley fulfilment site near Birmingham – one of eight centres in the UK – as a place to show visitors the inner workings of the e-commerce giant. Tours of the 700,000sq ft (65,000sq m) depot are available to anyone aged six years and over, lasting approximately one hour.
“Amazon.co.uk sold more than 5.5 million items on Black Friday 2014 at a rate of 64 items per second,” said Amazon.co.uk managing director, Christopher North. "We are now proud to invite our customers to see first-hand how our world-class employees and advanced technology in our fulfilment centres come together to make this magic happen.”
“In just the past few months we have created hundreds of new permanent jobs in our fulfilment centres in the UK and now have more than 7,000 permanent employees,” added John Tagawa, director of UK Operations at Amazon. “We’re extremely proud of the efforts of everyone who works in our fulfilment centres and opening our workplaces up to these tours is the perfect way to recognise all of their achievements.”
Amazon is also planning to launch its fulfilment centre tour in Germany, with more tours across Europe opening later this year. It is the latest example of major retail outlets transforming into attractions, after IKEA recently announced plans to repurpose its first Swedish store into a museum showcasing the history of the brand.
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