Amazon is to open another base in London with a 46,000 sq ft fashion photography studio in Shoreditch next year.
The internet retailer said the studio would be one of the largest of its kind in Europe and would provide images for its fashion business across the continent.
Amazon is renting the premises in railway arches by Hoxton station from Transport for London, with which it recently launched a click-and-collect service at tube stations.
More than 1m fashion items were sold in a week on Amazon.co.uk in the runup to Christmas last year. The site started selling clothing in 2008 but this year has ramped up its interest in the sector.
Sergio Bucher, vice-president of Amazon Fashion EU, said: “Fashion is one of the fastest growing businesses for Amazon across Europe and the creation of this new studio illustrates both our ambitions in this area and our dedication to providing a first-class customer experience.”
The studio, slightly larger than the one serving the US market that Amazon opened in New York in 2013, is planned to open by next summer, with 35 new permanent staff. Amazon said it expected to create more jobs in the capital, with about 2,000 employees based in London across the studio and three offices next year. That number is expected to increase to 5,000 in 2017 when Amazon opens an office in Shoreditch.
Despite its growing presence in London, The company is expected to continue its tax arrangements that last year allowed it to designate £4.3bn in UK sales as being made through its company in Luxembourg. Amazon’s UK business paid £4.2m in tax last year, reporting sales of £449m. TfL said the rental revenue would be reinvested in the transport network.
