Online retail giant Amazon just announced they will be hiring 1000 tech, marketing and human resources professionals for a second downtown Vancouver location. This would bring their total workforce in the city to 2000 by the time the new office complex is completed in 2020. The news provided a fair bit of excitement in BC’s politicians as the province was one of the applicants to Amazon for building its promised second headquarters in Vancouver.
The company was careful to note that although they were building a new 4,500 square-metre second corporate office in Vancouver, this announcement was unrelated to their quest for their self-described HQ2. Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson and BC Premier John Hogan still expressed their hopes that this was an indication of interest in greater investment in Canada’s westernmost metropolitan city.
Back in September, Amazon invited North American cities to bid on building their new headquarters while promising to spend $50-billion US in construction, and create 50,000 jobs in the winning region. Their requirements from the cities included a population of over 1 million, proximity to mass transit and an international airport, and an attractive location with modern sustainable amenities where their top tech talent would feel at home.
The company closed bidding in late October but announced that it had received 238 proposals from 43 U.S. states (as well as Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico), 3 Mexican states and 6 Canadian provinces. Amazon is expected to spend some time reviewing all bids before announcing their choice in 2018.
