Amazon Reps Talk Small Biz with Local Leaders

Representatives from Amazon met with elected leaders and economic development officials in Northeast Ohio Thursday to talk about what the company can do to aid small businesses. 

The roundtable meeting took place at Cuyahoga Community College's Corporate College East campus, just minutes away from where the e-commerce giant is building a fulfillment center on the site of the former Randall Park Mall in North Randall.

Jerome DuVal, Director of Economic Development for neighboring Warrensville Heights, was one of the attendees. He said he gets dozens of calls a day from local business owners about Amazon, many of whom are concerned about the impact that the warehouse will have on the local labor pool.

"The first thing they're asking me is 'When are they opening?'" he said. "How do we ensure that the jobs that are coming to the area are not going to impact that small business, because they're competing for the same resources."

Despite that concern, DuVal believes that many Warrensville Heights businesses could benefit from selling their products on Amazon. According to the company, about half of its sales come from small- and medium-sized businesses, and about 25,000 of those small businesses are based in Ohio.

The roundtable was the first of several such meetings the company plans to hold around the country over the coming months, an Amazon spokesman said.

Other participants included the Mayor Bradley Sellers of Warrensville Heights, Euclid Mayor Kirsten Holzheimer, Jim Laipply ‎of the Ohio Small Business Development Centers; and Congresswoman Marcia Fudge, whose district encompasses the future warehouse site.

Speaking to Nicole Jefferson, Amazon's U.S. Manager of Public Policy, Fudge said she hopes that as the company expands its presence in Ohio, it will commit to being a "good corporate partner."

"I hope you never forget that there are a whole lot of people in our communities that don't have access to the kind of technology that you use in your business. I mean, we're still fighting to get broadband in places that are more rural and more isolated," Fudge said.

And while Fudge and other officials mostly took turns praising Amazon for its investments in the state, they also said the company could do more to reach out to local business owners, especially those owned by minorities and veterans.