Amazon: 850 jobs, fulfillment center to North Mississippi
Amazon is bringing its first fulfillment center to Mississippi in an industrial park near the Tennessee border, creating 850 full-time jobs, the e-commerce titan announced last month.
The consumer goods fulfillment center will be in Marshall County, which borders Shelby County and Desoto County. The jobs will be generated over three years and have a $15 minimum hourly wage, according to Amazon.
Employees at the 554,000-squarefoot building in the Chickasaw Trails Industrial Park will pick, pack and ship household items like lawn and garden products, toiletries and other goods, according to Amazon. The park is about 27 miles from the Memphis International Airport.
An exact timeline for the fulfillment center to be up and running has not yet been disclosed.
In a statement, Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant said Mississippi “has what it takes for companies like Amazon to remain competitive and efficiently reach their consumers from our attractive location in the Southeast U.S.”
The Mississippi Development Authority is providing Amazon with a $4 million grant for road improvements and a $2 million grant to help with construction and road improvement costs, according to Tammy Craft, a spokeswoman for the MDA.
Marshall County is providing a property tax break for Amazon and road improvement assistance, while the Tennessee Valley Authority is providing project assistance, according to an MDA news release.
“We appreciate the state and local elected leaders who have supported Amazon’s entrance into Mississippi and we look forward to providing great job opportunities and an exceptional customer experience,” said John Felton, Amazon’s vice president of global customer fulfillment.
Max Garland covers Fedex, logistics and health care for The Commercial Appeal. Reach him at max. garland@commercialappeal.com or 901-529-2651 and on Twitter @Maxgarlandtypes.