Amazon plans CT call centre

Johannesburg - The world's largest online retailer Amazon said on Tuesday it plans to expand its customer service centre in Cape Town.

The investment is expected to create 1 000 new jobs as it bulks up the company's existing presence.

Said Brent Jaye, director of Amazon's North American customer service division: "It's important to have customer service representatives available when it's convenient for our customers.

"We are pleased with the South African and the Western Cape governments' commitment to developing a customer service centre industry. Cape Town is widely regarded for its hospitality, and we are excited about drawing upon this customer-centric talent pool."

A combination of a time zone that aligns with Central Europe, good language competencies and a favourable business climate for business process outsourcing (BPO) have all contributed to international companies increasingly looking to South Africa for their service centre needs.

Fagri Semaar, interim CEO of BPeSA Western Cape which promotes BPO in Cape Town and surrounding areas, said that the Amazon centre is testament to the blooming of SA's BPO industry.

"Amazon's investment into the Western Cape once again underlines the province's quality as a world class BPO destination," he said.

The centre is scheduled to open in October 2010 and create more than 600 new jobs during its first two years of operation, with an additional 400 seasonal jobs to be added during the fourth quarter holiday season. Amazon said it will advertise these jobs on its website.

The retailer reported sales of about $7bn during the first quarter of 2010. Its local operations in South Africa are restricted to customer services, and do not include local shipping and currency for its retail services.

 - Fin24.com