Amazon secures first Aussie distribution centre

Amazon's arrival in the Australian retail market has been pinpointed as likely given suggestions it has secured its first distribution centre in Melbourne's outer south eastern suburbs.

Amazon has agreed to lease the 24,387 square metre former Bunnings distribution centre at 29 National Drive in Dandenong (above) within the M2 Industry Park, owned by Melbourne's wealthy Pellicano family, according to the AFR.

The vacant A-Grade warehouse, which stands on a large 7.7 hectare site, could potentially be doubled in size to suit Amazon's needs. 

It has been available for lease since October 2014 with an asking rent of $75 per square metre (or $1.8 million per annum).

The online giant, founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994, has been scouting for logistics hubs in Sydney and Melbourne since revealing its ambitions earlier this year to offer it full retail offering in Australia,

In Sydney, it is understood there's a deal looming between Amazon and industrial developer Goodman Group on a large fulfillment facility in the west, rumoured to be the Oakdale Industrial Estate, on Old Wallgrove Road, at Eastern Creek.