Amazon says its B2B division now has more than 90,000 UK business customers. Amazon Business launched in the UK in April, and its customers now include FTSE 100 companies, multinational organisations as well as sole traders and small businesses.
Among them is the International Institute for Anti-Ageing, an international distribution company. “Amazon Business has enabled us to take the hassle out of purchasing the items we need to run our operations,” said Louisa Collins, head of IT and purchasing at the company. “Working with Amazon Business has helped us become more efficient with our purchasing for multiple stakeholders, which in turn means we are even more effective in how we service our own customers and end users.”
The update on numbers comes as Amazon Business launches new features in response to customer demand, including one-day delivery, pay by invoice, business invoice and catalogue curation. Integration on the Coupe Open Buy procurement system is now available, adding to systems including JAGGAER and SAP Ariba. Users can also see detailed transaction data on commercial card purchases.
“We’re working hard to continually introduce improvements that provide even greater selection, value and convenience to business customers looking to streamline their procurement, enabling them to save time and money, and increase their productivity,” said Bill Burkland, head of Amazon Business at Amazon.co.uk. “The latest suite of Amazon Business features has been driven by the feedback we’ve received from our customers and are designed to enhance the efficiency, visibility and controls our business customers want in their procurement process.”
Half of the goods sold on Amazon Business are from third-party businesses, including more than 30,000 UK sellers that are now using Amazon business seller features. Those who are using the VAT calculation service, for example, have increased their B2B sales by more than 50% in the first month, says Amazon.
Amazon Business now operates in Germany, India, Japan and the US as well as the UK. That means multinationals operating in those countries can manage their procurement needs via one interface, while sellers can reach new B2B customers around the world, offering features including business-only pricing, quantity discounts and exclusive business offers.
