• Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría ironic about the electoral repetition: "There is an advantage over 2015"
  • This Italian is at the forefront of the American e-commerce giant in Spain, one of the countries in the world where it is growing the most, especially its ultra-fast delivery service. We talked with her about the lights and shadows of this multinational that has revolutionized much more than our shopping habits.

Mariangela Marseglia , 45, is the only female Country Manager at Amazon . "Unfortunately," he says, before elaborating on the effort that, despite this, his company makes to promote female talent. He studied Economics and Management and worked in several multinationals until arriving in Amazon in 2010, where he holds the position of vice president as well as leading the business in Spain and Italy . Before, he was responsible for Europe and Asia for the Prime Now service for ultrafast deliveries of fresh produce.

He lives in Milan and travels several times a month to our country. What he likes most is his people : "They are direct when they talk, I love their creativity, their contagious love for life and their ability to recover from difficult situations." And he says that he is "very grateful to Spain", because his 14-month-old son is "half Catalan": he was conceived in a clinic in Barcelona where she and her partner went, also a woman, because in Italy gay unions cannot Access fertility treatments.

Marseglia enters the rag of the main controversies that have tarnished Amazon's reputation in recent months. We interviewed her in a space of those marathon days in Spain in which her agenda is used to the second. Of course, true to the policy of your company, which only provides global data (such as that it has 100 million Prime subscribers), it does not reveal figures on the magnitude of your business here, neither revenue nor sales nor number of customers. He only concedes that this is one of the five main markets in Europe and that it still has a lot of growth potential.

About the future does not advance much. But it is a near time, almost present in the US, in which perhaps robots will prepare orders that will be delivered by drones and who, if you know soon, will have selected a computer that will know us better than ourselves.



Do we Spaniards like electronic commerce? Yes, this is one of the countries where we are growing faster worldwide, because here it is still underdeveloped, compared to other places like the United Kingdom. And we will continue to expand our business in Spain as it has enormous potential. Are there still reluctance to buy online? At the beginning yes, because you have to get used to it. But then customers around the world love the low prices and the wide range of products. Spaniards do not like to pay shipping costs, they want free deliveries. And also have the peace of mind that they can return what they buy, also for free. Customers ask for security and guarantees, and with us they have them. What do we like to acquire at Amazon? Technology, electronics, mobiles ... And something that has grown a lot is the ultra-fast distribution [in two hours] of fresh products. Madrid and Barcelona are the cities where it has grown fastest in the world, along with Milan. It seems that Spaniards are very interested in food. We have established a collaboration with local partners that works very well; In Madrid, for example, you can buy it at the Mercado de la Paz, which is very convenient because they have high quality products that you can only buy there. Is that ultrafast delivery the new battlefield of ecommerce? Everyone is fighting to see who arrives before. The English Court has allied with Alibabá ... When I started at Amazon nine years ago it was delivered in two or three days and that seemed very fast. Today that period seems very long, we get used to receiving it every time before, we have become very impatient. For better or worse, we want things here and now. So if you want to remain competitive you have to be faster. Is there a limit to what they can sell? Anything but weapons? (Laughter) No, I don't think we sell it, but everything else ... We already offer 250 million different products. We have started an experiment in Spain with cars, in 48 hours we deliver your vehicle. I don't think there is a limit to what we can market. Everything the customer wants, we sell it to them. They have recently started to open physical stores in the US such as Amazon Go, without dependents, or Amazon 4 Stars, with the most recommended products. Why do they return to traditional commerce after triumphing online? There are no longer online and offline consumers, they buy both ways, and that is why we want to offer all the options, so that they do it wherever they want. Customers want to go to a physical store, but also the convenience of buying something online and take it home. There are already 8,000 Spanish SMEs that sell through you. Yes, they are doing very well and they find it very easy to export, Because their products are available to everyone. It's about selling outside of Spain with very little capital or technology investment, because we put our entire organization at your disposal. In 2018, Spanish companies exported products worth 400 million euros. Some complain that they find it difficult to obtain benefits given the percentage they are charged. Our rates are very transparent, they can range from 7% to 15% of the sale price For most products. It is not such a big investment for the huge service we offer. Of course, it depends on whether we deal with logistics, payments ... The EU has opened an investigation to see if they are engaging in monopolistic practices, if they use the confidential data of these retail businesses to favor the sale of their own products .When looking at the numbers you can see that that does not have much foundation, because our marketplace is larger than our own business and is growing much faster, it already accounts for 58% of the volume. It would go against our own interest. Voices have emerged in the US that say they have become so powerful that they are harming free competition, and ask that the legislation be reviewed. We are open to dialogue, but I like to talk about figures and not impressions. It is believed that Amazon is very large but the reality is that ecommerce does not represent so much. In Spain it only accounts for 6% of total trade, and we are only one more actor, not the only one, and there are some that also compete in the offline field. There is a huge competition, and that is why we must be very intelligent. Also on streaming platforms there are many competitors. Now that you mention your Prime Video service. The docuserie about Sergio Ramos has just been released. Are you going to invest more in Spanish content? We consider Prime video one of the pillars of our offer. Our clients like it and we will continue to make a significant investment, especially in local production. Shortly after assuming their new position last year, they had to face strikes by workers in their warehouses in Spain and Italy, protesting labor conditions. I would not like to work in a company that does not treat its employees well, I am very proud of what we offer them. It would be stupid for a company like Amazon to exploit its workers, because in addition stores are the heart, if their operations do not work as they should this company would sink quickly. I think that if we are doing well and we succeed, it is because of our good working conditions: very competitive salaries, which start at 19,000 euros, health insurance, up to 8,000 euros in training ... They also use autonomous drivers who deliver with their own car, within the Amazon Flex program. For unions, exploitation. There is a debate, but I don't agree with that. It was an experiment that allows us to expand. It is very popular already in the US and the United Kingdom, and we wanted to test how it worked in Spain. The good thing about Flex is that it allows you to earn money and be your own boss. We offer them the technology so that in the time they have free, maybe students and retirees, they can earn money. Its platform allows you to buy everything from anywhere in Spain and that is why there are those who accuse them of ending the small business. It is not true that we are destroying it. There are stores that were dying and have managed to survive selling and exporting through Amazon. Businesses will have to specialize, because there are things that we can never offer, such as going to the market because you know the person who advises you what fish to take with you. I like to do it and I would never do without that relationship, but there are times that I am in a hurry or I am working late and I have run out of milk or diapers for my son and there is no other option than to buy it online. We should put aside such simplistic categories of white or black, you can't say that Amazon is good or bad. As consumers we must make more conscious choices. What do you think of the so-called Google rate? It is fair that there is an evolution of the way in which digital business is taxed, but what would not be smart is for countries to take measures in isolation, as France has done, because that It would be a disadvantage for their companies compared to those of others. We support a shared solution. It is important that the Spanish Government does not start doing it just because it needs more money. If a fee is imposed on income, businesses like ours would have no alternative but to pass it on to the sellers and they would transfer it to the consumers, with which in the end the prices would rise. How do they support female talent? with what you have to be committed to. We are 40% women, but as you get into the job category there are fewer. Our Management Committee was recently renewed and Jeff [Bezos, founder and executive director, one of the richest men in the world] decided to be 50% female. In the end we have to look like our clients, it is absurd that there are no more women at all levels, because most of our clients are. It's not easy, since there are few girls with technical profiles, and they have a harder time getting to a job than men. They think about it and feel insecure. I tell them: "Go for it." We need more to take risks. That is what I did, every time I saw an opportunity, he said: "I may not know how to do it, but I will try." Only then can you get it. She is married to another woman and they have a child, something she speaks openly about and that she even mentions in her resume. Why did you decide to make it public? I am generally very reserved, but in this case I thought it was my duty, because when you have a visible position it is important to show that you can have a normal and full life by being gay. It is true that few people in important positions assume this responsibility and I want there to be more to do so. It was difficult to talk about this the first time, but once done everything was shot. I hope it is an example for people who want to get out of the closet. I had a time when it was not that I pretended to be another person, but that I simply did not talk about myself and that was a huge pressure, because I had to remember what I said to each person and never talked about my private life, it was as if I didn't have It was very hard. What is Jeff Bezos like? A very intelligent, curious and passionate guy. That's why he does everything he does, out of passion, to invent and discover new things ... That motivates him, and it's something contagious. When you talk to him he transmits his energy and his ability to see the future, he is not the typical boring businessman who only talks about money.

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