Amazon launch: ‘Everything's similar or worse than what's already here’

Africa Melane speaks to Dr Schalk Grobbelaar, Senior Lecturer at the University of Pretoria.

Listen to the interview in the audio below.

Amazon launched in South Africa on Tuesday, promising a diverse range of products.

On the first day, South Africans were left underwhelmed by the options.

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“It is either similar or worse than what is already available.”

- Dr Schalk Grobbelaar, Senior Lecturer at the University of Pretoria

Grobbelaar says that this seemed like more of a ‘soft launch’ as they are already coming into a competitive market.

However, he thinks we will see big changes in coming years as they would not have come here without big plans.

“I think they see South Africa as a gateway to Africa.”

- Dr Schalk Grobbelaar, Senior Lecturer at the University of Pretoria

Amazon Prime will likely be the company’s biggest offering when it becomes available locally.

Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the interview.