Amazon to launch this week in time for Black Friday

Amazon is ready to launch its entire marketplace in Australia on Friday 24 November. This date coincides with America's major retail sales event, Black Friday.

While Black Friday is an American tradition that marks the beginning of the Christmas shopping season, some retailers in Australia have latched onto the event in the recent years. Local stores have started offering extended trading hours and bargain prices, to boost sales and join in on celebrations.

Amazon has contacted retailers who signed up to use Amazon's marketplace platform. An email was obtained and reposted by the website LifeHacker that says sellers should prepare to take orders from 2pm Thursday.

"To prepare for the launch of the Amazon Marketplace in Australia we will start an internal testing phase with a small number of customers," the email reads.

"As your products will be able to be purchased, please make sure your pricing and stock is up-to-date."

The email was signed off with the message that Amazon was "very excited" to be working with Australian retailers.

"Let's make history!" it says.

Received confirmation that Amazon Marketplace sellers were told Amazon goes live at 2pm AEDT Thursday!!#AmazonAustralia

— jackson from the internet (@dctrjack) November 21, 2017

Amazon is yet to confirm the email or the launch date, though reports are saying it has long been planning on launching in time for the Black Friday sales.

Retail consultant Scott Kilmartin is conducting research for a podcast on Amazon's entry into Australia. He spoke to a number of Amazon sellers, all of whom confirmed they received the email about the soft launch this Thursday.

"It's from 2pm Thursday, and my understanding is that it will just stay open," he told BusinessDay.

Coincidently Mr Kilmartin runs an ice cream truck business. He was contacted by Amazon about an event at Melbourne's Southern Cross train station. It will be based around their yellow and orange colour scheme – and reportedly include lots of ice cream.

Amazon's local boss Rocco Braeuniger told a sellers' conference that it would launch with both its third-party marketplace offer, as well as its own retail offer of potentially thousands of everyday products.

Australia is also set to have its first Amazon "fulfilment centre", situated in a warehouse in Dandenong South, Melbourne.