US online retail giant Amazon to build new logistics center in Spain

The new warehouse will be located in the Plataforma Central Iberum industrial park in the municipality, which is located around 40 kilometers south of Madrid, and will count on usable space of more than 100,000 square meters (around the size of 12 soccer fields), according to a press release from the company.

The firm has already begun the hiring process for a number of positions, from engineers to specialists in human resources

The firm has already begun the hiring process for a number of positions, from engineers to specialists in human resources, information technology and warehouse management. Jobseekers can apply at the website www.trabajaenamazon.es.

The Toledo center will allow Amazon to scale up its European logistics network, which is currently made up of more than 30 centers in seven countries, with the aim of continuing to increase its catalogue of products and satisfy the rising demand of customers, the operations director for Spain and Italy, Fred Pattje, explained.

What’s more, the executive added, the hub will contribute to the international expansion of external vendors, many of them small local businesses. “The installation of the multinational Amazon is an investment in the future and the development of our municipality,” said the mayor of Illescas, José Manuel Tofiño. “It’s an opportunity to create jobs and to create an industrial fabric that will make us a reference point for local, provincial and regional development.”

Amazon launched in Spain in 2011, and its first logistical center, located in San Fernando de Henares in Madrid, began operations in 2012. It has since been expanded on several occasions.

The installation is an investment in the future and the development of our municipality Mayor of Illescas, José Manuel Tofiño

Another center is located in Castellbisbal, Barcelona, and which is dedicated to Amazon Pantry (food and drugstore products), while two more centers are under construction in El Prat and Martorelles, both of which are in Barcelona and are due to go into operation in the fall.

The US retail giant also has two urban logistics centers in Madrid and Barcelona, for ultra-fast deliveries, and it recently opened two logistics centers in Getafe (Madrid) and Paterna (Valencia).

Amazon, whose workforce in Spain is due to grow from its current 1,000 people to 1,600, also counts on corporate offices in the country as well as a number of technological development centers and support centers for SMEs.

English version by Simon Hunter.