Amazon opens supply chain services to all businesses

Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) launched Amazon Supply Chain Services, making its freight, distribution, fulfillment, and parcel shipping capabilities available to businesses beyond its own retail operations and marketplace sellers.

The service extends Amazon's logistics network to companies across industries including healthcare, automotive, manufacturing, and retail. Amazon's supply chain infrastructure includes 80,000 trailers, 24,000 intermodal containers, and 100 aircraft.

Several major companies have signed up for the services. Procter & Gamble is using Amazon's freight services to transport raw materials and finished goods. 3M is leveraging the freight network to move products from manufacturing sites to distribution centers. Lands' End is using unified inventory within Amazon's network to fulfill orders across multiple sales channels, while American Eagle Outfitters is using Amazon's parcel shipping for online order delivery.

The offering includes three main components: freight services spanning ocean, air, ground, and rail transportation; distribution and fulfillment services for inventory management and order processing; and parcel shipping with two-to-five-day delivery speeds.

"Supply chain wasn't just a function at Amazon—it was core to providing an exceptional shopping experience," said Peter Larsen, vice president of Amazon Supply Chain Services, according to the company's announcement.

Amazon has been providing logistics services to third-party sellers for three years, with hundreds of thousands of sellers using the network to move and deliver packages. The new service builds on this existing infrastructure to serve a broader range of businesses.

Businesses can access the services through a centralized console at supplychain.amazon.com. The company positions this as similar to how Amazon Web Services expanded cloud computing access to external businesses.

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