Amazon Australia set for soft launch today

Amazon's online Australian marketplace is expected to launch this afternoon, according to leaks from the US retail giant.

The leaked email advised sellers of a soft launch date of 2pm AEST - or 3pm AEDT - today, 9NEWS understands.

Only a "small number of customers" will be involved in the early testing phase, the email said.

Amazon has not made the official launch date clear, so it is not known when all Australians will be given full access.

However, retail experts believe that successful testing may allow the site to go completely live tomorrow, in time for Black Friday sales.

Amazon's Australian site is already operational, but only offers books and apps. The launch of the full site will allow Australians to purchase tech, gaming, beauty and other products. 

About 500 retailers will initially supply the Australian site, retail analyst Scott Kilmartin told 9NEWS yesterday.

"The Country Fire Authority inspected the Amazon Dandenong warehouse yesterday and gave the building clearance to operate," Mr Kilmartin said.

"The first shift started at 7am (Tuesday) morning at the warehouse and the .au site is live for a small selection of customers and they will be shipping orders."

The sudden launch could cause problems for Amazon retailers, Mr Kilmartin said.

"They've been kept in the dark a little bit… the challenge is now to have enough stock," he said.

"If Amazon really goes off like an Apple launch, some retailers might run out before Christmas."

Last week, Amazon invited 600 smaller Australian retailers to a sellers' summit in Sydney - a sales and marketing session to outline how it would launch in Australia.

Its Australian manager told the gathering that, when it opens, it will sell and deliver products out of its own warehouse. It will also allow retailers to sell their products from Amazon's online marketplace platform, which they will have to deliver.

Australian Retailers Association executive director Russell Zimmerman attended the summit and said he felt optimistic about Amazon's launch in Australia.

"We never believed that Amazon will decimate retail," he said.

"We've always believed that Amazon is here to assist the retailers of Australia to grow and develop their businesses both locally and internationally."

Larger retailers, such as Harvey Norman and JB Hi-Fi, may not agree. They've been developing strategies for months to counter the juggernaut.