Prime Day 2023: Behind the scenes of an Amazon warehouse
FENTON, Mo. (KTVI) -- Before the sun came up Tuesday, work was already underway at Amazon’s delivery station in Fenton, Missouri. From conveyor belts to carts, colors and QR codes, every package finds its proper place.
Tuesday marked the start of this year's Amazon Prime Day event, which offers deals for Amazon Prime members for 48 hours through Wednesday.
Oklahoma City has multiple Amazon warehouses similar to those in Missouri.
“We prepare about four weeks out," said Andrew Prewett, senior station manager at Amazon’s Fenton warehouse. “Unique to Amazon, we actually stow our packages to bags. We want to combine multiple orders within a bag. It makes it easier to transfer multiple packages to a cart and to load into the van.”
The 142,000-square-foot facility is roughly the size of two-and-a-half football fields. It serves customers within a 1,700-square-mile radius.
During a normal week, the Fenton delivery station processes 285,000 customer orders. But during Prime week, that number jumps to 370,000 orders.
“When the driver shows up, they know what their route is, it shows them where to pick it up, they take it, and they load it onto the van. Every bag that we pick, we have to pick it in a specific order because when the driver loads it, they want to load the front of the van with their last stuff. They want to work from the back of the van to the front. It makes it easier and quicker for them," said Prewett.
“Last year, we had 300 million items bought by customers," said Amazon spokesperson Andy DiOrio. He expects another buying blitz for Prime Day 2023.
“Really some of the top categories we’re seeing are tech, toys and home goods. With deals dropping every 30 minutes, they can put items in their cart, and it automatically kicks in with the discount when those items drop," said DiOrio.
With an emphasis on ease, Amazon Prime Day remains primetime for consumers to cash in. But none of it would be possible without the people working around the clock in warehouses like this one.
“I’m incredibly proud of the people that work here. They put in a lot of hard work," said Prewett.