How Amazon Conquered Italy
The e-commerce giant had struggled to gain a foothold in a society that prefers to shop in person, with cash, but now Italians are hooked on online shopping.
Client
The New York Times
Year
2020
Ludovica Tomaciello, 19, had never shopped on Amazon before being trapped at her parents’ house in March during Italy’s coronavirus lockdown. Bored one afternoon scrolling TikTok, she spotted hair scrunchies that she then tracked down and ordered on Amazon.
When the package arrived, she was hooked. She soon signed up for Amazon Prime and turned to the site to buy a tapestry and neon lights to decorate her bedroom; halter tops, jeans and magenta Air Jordan sneakers; and a remote to wirelessly take selfies for Instagram.
“My mom was like, ‘Can you stop this?’” Ms. Tomaciello, who lives in Avellino, said.
Salvatore Ciliberti retrieved his order at an Amazon locker in the outskirts of Naples, Italy.Credit.
In Calitri, a village of 4,000 people in southern Italy, Amazon sponsored a Christmas festival last year. Here, a mother and son walked outside the village.
A member of the Moccia family, Antonino Moccia, at its pasta factory, which began selling through Amazon in the pandemic.
Chili pepper linguini pasta drying at La Fabbrica della Pasta in Gragnano, Italy.
Workers select and package pasta at La Fabbrica della Pasta di Gragnano, a family owned pasta factory in Gragnano
An Amazon employee unloading a truck of packages that will be processed at a delivery station in Arzano, Italy.
Amazon employees process packages at a delivery station in Arzano, Italy
Francesca Gemma, an Amazon employee in Passo Corese, near Rome
When Francesca Gemma graduated from college in 2016, Amazon was the only company hiring in her area. She now works at an Amazon fulfillment center in Passo Corese, near Rome, picking hundreds of products from the shelves every hour so the goods can be shipped to customers.
“On the first day, the muscles of my legs felt like I had done a marathon — I couldn’t climb up the stairs,” she said. “It’s not for everyone, but it’s a job.”
Ms. Gemma, who is also a representative for Cgil, a national labor union, inside the center, said orders had skyrocketed during the lockdown and remained high. But she said that besides some bonuses she received at the peak of the emergency, Amazon did not provide warehouse staff much else to share in its success.
An Amazon contractor delivers a package in Montecorvino Rovella, Italy
In Calitri, a village of 4,000 people in southern Italy, Amazon sponsored a Christmas festival last year as part of a marketing campaign to show it could reach even the most isolated areas. It paid for a Christmas tree in the town square and provided gifts to children. The mayor hoped it would lead more artisans and farmers to sell through the site.
Mayor of Calitri Michele di Maio, supporter of the Amazon sponsored Christmas tree
Luciano Capossela, a jeweler in Calitri, helped organize a protest of the Christmas festival with other shop owners, who closed their stores for the night and blacked out their windows.
He has watched as the community has embraced Amazon. One customer recently texted him a screenshot of a wristwatch for sale on Amazon, asking if Mr. Capossela could match the price. When he said the Amazon price was lower than what he could get from a distributor, the customer never replied.
“If we keep going this way in 10 to 15 years, we will only have Amazon and everything else will no longer exist,” Mr. Capossela said.
Rosa De Nicola, owner of a clothing shop in Calitri, joined the protest against the Amazon event
Calitri is part of an area where depopulation is so bad that some property is for sale for just 1 euro
Residents of Calitri, in southern Italy