Amazon West Midlands investment tops £2.3bn
Amazon claims its investment in the West Midlands since 2010 has topped £2.3 billion.
The US-based online retail giant, which has a giant fulfilment centre at Rugeley, Staffordshire, has created 5,000 full and part-time jobs.
It has launched its first ever detailed view of regional investment across the UK. The Amazon UK Economic Impact Hub shows that the company has invested more than £1.3 billion in Staffordshire and Shropshire and £660 million in the West Midlands conurbation.
The wider West Midlands investment led to the production of goods and services that contributed more than £2.6 billion to the region's GDP since 2010
More than 380 people have completed Amazon's employability skills training programme and it has taken on more than 140 apprentices in the region.
The West Midlands has around 5,500 small and medium-sized selling partners with small business from the region selling on Amazon recording more than £360m of export sales in 2020. In Shropshire and Staffordshire Amazon has around 1,300 SME businesses selling on Amazon as independent selling partners. They recorded more than £65m million of export sales.
In partnership with the charity Magic Breakfast, Amazon delivered more than 136,000 healthy breakfasts to vulnerable children and schools across the West Midlands last year.
“Amazon is passionate about creating jobs, empowering SMEs and supporting the communities where we live and work. Our new Amazon UK Economic Impact Hub shows our ongoing commitment and contribution to Shropshire and Staffordshire at a local level for the first time,” said John Boumphrey, UK country manager for Amazon.
“The region has been a fantastic home for us for many years, and we are excited by the opportunity to continue to invest, invent and have a positive impact in the local community.”
