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Thursday, 2nd April 2015
In Business In Japan,
BMW sells electric cars on Amazon Japan
In a huge move for online shopping, car manufacturer BMW has begun selling electric cars on Amazon Japan.
The Japanese unit of the German firm revealed yesterday (April 1st) that it had started selling its i3 models on Amazon.co.jp after proving extremely popular in both the European and North American markets. The company is looking to see if more customers can be found through online retail platforms.
Currently, two models of the car are available: the regular i3 with a range of 229 kilometers and the i3 Range Extender that can run up to 300 kilometers on a single battery charge.
A spokesperson for the firm in Tokyo said: “We have 46 dealers (which sell the electric model) in Japan, but we hope this e-selling will cover the entire market more thoroughly. This will widen the sales channel and improve convenience for customers. So many people are using the website. We would like to research potential customer groups who may be interested in our products.”
It is important to note however that, unlike books and household appliances, the purchase cannot be made through just a few clicks on the retailer website. Once you have loaded the car in your virtual shopping cart, you will then have to wait for a phone call from BMW and then send them over documents to prove that you not only have a parking space but also a nearby spot to charge the vehicle.
This comes just weeks after it was announced that Amazon's new Home Services marketplace could enable customers to rent out grazing goats. Being used as a method to keep vegetation levels under control, the goats are just one of 700 professional services listed. Amazon Japan has also actually used goats on its grounds in Gifu since 2013.
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