“Hello! It’s Mr Amazon here!” Graham Henry calls out as he arrives at the front door, package in hand. He’s happy to be here, a big and genuine smile on his face, as he waits for the recipient to open the door.
The phrase is a nice touch, more personal than simply ringing the doorbell and leaving the envelope or parcel on the front step, adding a warm human moment. Mr Amazon elicits a smile almost every time.
If no-one is home, and he can’t reach the owner by phone or text, he carefully places it on the doormat, making sure it’s protected from the weather and as inconspicuous as possible, before snapping a quick photo to confirm that it’s been delivered successfully and sending it to the customer.
And with that, he’s back down the path and into the driver’s seat of his dark blue Mazda 3, cranking up the volume on ABC Classical and looking for the next address on his list.
Mr Henry, an upholsterer by trade, spent 50 years in the furniture industry before branching out and becoming a delivery partner for Amazon Flex. Mr Henry earns extra money delivering Amazon packages to customers, enabling the company to offer faster delivery times and respond to peaks in demand. He’s been doing it since January, working out of the company’s Pinkenba depot near Brisbane Airport.
He tells news.com.au that he “quite enjoys” doing something different.
“It was time for a change,” he says. “I can do a block, it might take five hours, and then I have the flexibility to do a bit of upholstery in the afternoon, but I do it on my terms. In the meantime, Amazon Flex is keeping my energy up and you know, as a 64-year-old man, you must keep the mind and body active.”
Not being a digital native, Mr Henry is learning things every day.
Every time he has a delivery block, he logs on via the Amazon Flex app and arrives at the delivery station about 15 minutes early. Loads are distributed according to vehicle size - for example, someone with a van might work eight hours, while Mr Henry in his hatchback typically works for about four hours. He scans in and enters the station, loads up his car with packages, and sees where the road takes him.
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