Amazon has taken the wraps off its newest fulfillment center in New Jersey, a 650,000-square-foot facility in Gloucester County that will house more than 1,000 employees.
After pitch to Amazon, Trenton feels it’s one step closer to unlocking its potential
Making a pitch for Amazon’s second headquarters achieved two very important goals for Trenton: Not only did the city submit a competitive, coordinated bid for Amazon HQ2 — a feat that may have seemed unlikely in past years — but it created a blueprint for showing its vast potential as a vibrant, mixed-use destination for other large corporations.
The Amazon effect: The e-commerce giant has infiltrated every major asset class in New Jersey
Amazon has long been known for having a profound impact on the bricks-and-mortar retail business. But as it turns out, that’s only one piece of the story of how the e-commerce powerhouse is transforming commercial real estate. New Jersey is poised to feel that impact as much as any other state in the country.
All hands on deck: How Newark’s bid for Amazon HQ2 rallied landlords, city officials
While there are still months to go before Amazon reveals it selection for its HQ2 project, making the pitch has rallied developers and public-sector leaders in Newark in a way that the city hasn’t seen in recent memory. That show of unity was only amplified on Oct. 16, when Gov. Chris Christie announced that the state would officially support the city’s bid, even as several other cities in New Jersey jockeyed for the project.
Game-changer: Amazon has been a driving force in surging N.J. distribution market
There’s no ignoring Amazon’s impact on the state’s industrial sector since early 2013, when the company committed to building its first New Jersey fulfillment center in Robbinsville. Not only has Amazon absorbed at least roughly 9 million square feet of warehouse and distribution space since that time. It quickly emboldened other pure e-commerce players that were hesitant to establish a footprint in New Jersey, amid concerns over having to collect sales tax from customers if they had a physical location here.