Beaver, WV (WOAY) – Amazon has opened a new facility in Beaver, offering same-day and next-day delivery to rural customers who previously lacked access to Prime shipping, and the operation is already growing.
The facility spans approximately 95,000 square feet and launched Dec. 4. It employs more than 200 people on-site and another 150 in delivery roles, with a starting wage of no less than $19 per hour.
“We are a co-located facility of both a fulfillment center and a delivery station,” said Ashley Cabender, Site Leader of the Beaver Amazon Facility. “So that gives us the unique opportunity to not only pick and package customer items, but deliver them sometimes as part of the same day.”
The facility is part of Amazon’s broader $4 billion investment in rural delivery infrastructure. Cabender said the Beaver location fills a gap in Prime shipping availability for the region.
“This rural site gives us the opportunity for customers who didn’t used to be able to have prime shipping to get that same day or next day fast shipping that maybe it wasn’t offered to them before,” Cabender said.
Stocking decisions are driven by customer purchase data and algorithms, keeping high-demand items on shelves before they are ordered. “These items on these shelves are things that are typically things you may need quickly or often,” Cabender said. “So think toothpaste, dog food, diapers. I could get on there, place an order and have it within a couple of hours just to my door.”
Cabender said employment will continue to grow alongside the operation. “As the operation grows, we’ll continue to grow our employment base,” she said. “As we continue to get those orders, we’ll continue to grow the operation so that we can meet that demand.”
Gina Belcher, Executive Director of the New River Gorge Regional Development Authority, said the region was ready when Amazon began looking for a site.
“I think that this area was most competitive because we had a site that was ready and we were able to respond with that information that they were looking for immediately,” Belcher said. “We had what they were looking for and we made it easy for them to make the decision.”
