Amazon is going to start accepting all non-essential products to its warehouses again this week, a month after pausing those shipments

REUTERS/Phil Noble

A worker collects orders at Amazon's fulfilment centre in Rugeley, central England December 11, 2012.

• Amazon will start accepting all non-essential items at its warehouses later this week, the company confirmed in an email to Business Insider.
• The change comes a month after it suspended shipments of non-essentials to its warehouses to make more room for vital products, like face masks and toilet paper, amid COVID-19.
• Amazon's spokesperson said there will be limits to how many products per item sellers can ship to its warehouses.
• The change signals easing pressure on Amazon's supply chain after a month of grappling with a surge in demand caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
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Amazon will start accepting non-essential products at its warehouses later this week, a month after suspending those shipments due to supply chain lockdowns caused by COVID-19.

Amazon's spokesperson confirmed in an email to Business Insider that third-party sellers who use Amazon's warehouses to store their products will be able to resume sending in all non-essential items later this week. There will be limits to how many products per item the sellers can ship in, but the idea is to lift the restrictions imposed last month, the spokesperson said.

"Later this week, we will allow more products into our fulfillment centers," Amazon's spokesperson said. "Products will be limited by quantity to enable us to continue prioritizing products and protecting employees, while also ensuring most selling partners can ship goods into our facilities."

The change signals easing pressure on Amazon's supply chain that were caused by surging demand for essential products, like face masks and toilet paper, amid the coronavirus pandemic.

On March 17, Amazon announced that it would stop accepting non-essential products to its warehouses, prioritizing high-demand products like medical supplies and household staples. Ten days later, it told sellers that it was expanding the types of products accepted, saying products would be accepted and reviewed on an "item-by-item" basis.

Amazon is still grappling with shipment delays for most products, with some non-essential items taking over a month to arrive for some customers. There's also questions around why Amazon was shipping non-essentials, like sex toys and video games, when there restrictions last month.

To help improve its supply chain, Amazon hired 100,000 new warehouse and delivery workers over the past month. On Monday, Amazon announced that it would hire an additional 75,000 workers in its warehouses.

The Wall Street Journal reported the change earlier Monday.

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