#126 - Amazon Paused Global Expansion, Third Quarter Results, and more
Hot News
Amazon Paused Global Expansion in 2023
According to Amazon documents obtained by Eugene Kim of Insider in 2021, Amazon planned to launch in Colombia in February 2023 and Chile in April 2023 as part of codename Project Santos. South Africa, codenamed Project Fela, was expected in February 2023, and Nigeria was set for April 2023.
marketplacepulse.com
Amazon.com Announces Third Quarter Results
Net sales increased 13% to $143.1 billion in the third quarter, compared with $127.1 billion in third quarter 2022. Excluding the $1.4 billion favorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, net sales increased 11% compared with third quarter 2022.
aboutamazon.com
Walmart and Amazon Use AI in Battle for Third-Party Sellers
Amazon and Walmart aren’t just battling for the eCommerce crown. They’re also locked in an artificial intelligence (AI) rivalry to woo third-party sellers. In their quest, both retail giants are leveraging some pretty hot technologies — AI to improve not only the shopping experience for their customers but the selling experience for sellers.
pymnts.com
Good to Know
Amazon’s Marketplace Business is Growing Once Again
This past quarter, Amazon’s online stores business grew 7% year-over-year to $57.2 billion. These numbers outperform the 0% and 4% growth rates in the online retail division in the first and second quarters of 2023, respectively. And Amazon’s third-party sellers services revenue — which includes seller fees, fulfillment and shipping fees among other services — grew 20% year-over-year to $34.4 billion in the third-quarter.
modernretail.co
Amazon Plans South African Online Store for 2024
“We look forward to launching Amazon.co.za in South Africa, providing local sellers, brand owners and entrepreneurs — small and large — the opportunity to grow their business with Amazon, and delivering great value and a convenient shopping experience for customers across South Africa,” Robert Koen, general manager of the Sub-Saharan Africa region for Amazon, said in the release.
pymnts.com
Michigan Sellers Built Businesses on Amazon. Why Are Some Closing Shop?
The founder of one automotive brand, which sells car accessories and DIY auto kits, told Modern Retail that he stopped selling through Amazon in the middle of the summer this year after coming to the conclusion that his company wasn’t making any profits on Amazon, largely due to a high return rate.
modernretail.co
Amazon Shoppers ‘Bribed’ to Leave Positive Reviews
You might be tempted to buy products on Amazon that have glowing reviews and high ratings. After all, who doesn’t want to get the best deal possible? Before you click that “buy now” button, you might want to take a closer look at those reviews. Because, as it turns out, not all of them are genuine.
cyberguy.com
Generative AI-Powered 3D model supplier for Amazon, P&G, Kohls and other major e-commerce retailers has signed an expansion 3D modeling contract with Vornado Air LLC, a leading American company that specializes in manufacturing and marketing air circulators, air purifiers, heaters, and humidifiers. Nextech3D.ai was given select access to Amazon's seller central to bring certain customers' 3D product models onto the Amazon e-commerce marketplace.
yahoo.com
OtterBox Combats Unauthorized Sellers and Counterfeits on Amazon
The rise of e-commerce has revolutionized the way we shop, making it easier than ever to access a wide range of products from the comfort of our homes. While this convenience has brought countless benefits, it has also given rise to a significant problem: unauthorized resellers and the proliferation of counterfeit products sold online.
jdsupra.com
Extensiv (formerly 3PL Central) — delivering omnichannel software solutions for warehouse, inventory, and order management — today announced a summary of key findings from its 3Q 2023 Market Insights research. The data reveals continued quarter over quarter growth in order volume for third-party sellers on Amazon, while Shopify volume and all other third-party marketplaces remain flat.
yahoo.com
The FTC’s Amazon Lawsuit New Hampshire Joined is a Mess of Bad Economics
New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella has joined 16 other state attorneys general in the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) lawsuit alleging that “Amazon is a monopolist” that engages in illegal anti-competitive behavior.But a close read of FTC Chairwoman Lina Khan’s suit reveals a confused and ultimately unconvincing case that Amazon a) is a monopoly player and b) has harmed consumers.
jbartlett.org
Amazon Dropshipping Gives Entrepreneurs Options to Sell Products Without Dealing With Shipping
Let's walk through an imagined example of the process. Say you set up a website that sells handbags, but you Aren't Planning on actually keeping pallets laden with bags in your garage or bedroom. Instead, your online store — an Amazon business page, in this case — is where customers browse and place orders.
businessinsider.com
Amazon Shortens Holiday Returns Window to Pre-pandemic Level
Amazon is reverting back to its old holiday-returns policy that starts November 1st. For 3 consecutive years, Amazon had required sellers to comply with an extremely generous policy that let buyers return items purchased in October until the end of January - giving them 4 months to hold on to their items.
ecommercebytes.com
Nearly three decades ago, Amazon set out to be Earth’s most customer-centric company, where people can find and discover the widest possible selection of safe and authentic goods. As part of that mission, we obsess over earning and maintaining trust, and ensuring that we provide a trustworthy shopping experience.
aboutamazon.eu
Do Amazon and Google Lock Out Competition?
Anti-monopoly cases have been known to reshape corporate America. In 1984 at&t’s telephone network was found to have excluded competing firms. The company was controversially broken up in a move that ultimately led to a boom in innovation among its rivals. Meanwhile, a case against Microsoft in 1998 may have kept the door open for Google’s subsequent rise.
aol.com
Shopify Vs. Amazon (2023 Comparison)
There are a lot of opportunities for e-commerce entrepreneurs as the number of online shoppers keeps climbing every year. Before launching an online business, you’ll need to choose an e-commerce platform where you’ll set up. There are many feature-rich platforms on the market, but we’ll focus on two popular options in this guide—Shopify and Amazon.
forbes.com
Bookkeeping Solution Now Supports Amazon, Poshmark in Addition to eBay and Etsy
A solution to help sellers with tax season now supports sellers on Amazon and Poshmark in addition to eBay and Etsy. Seller Ledger stepped in earlier this year to fill the void left after GoDaddy Bookkeeping abruptly ended its solution in 2022.Kevin Reeth cofounded Outright in 2008, which was sold to GoDaddy. After GoDaddy pulled the plug on the original tool, Reeth launched Seller Ledger to help sellers who were left in the lurch, as we reported in March.
ecommercebytes.com
Amazon Shortens Default Handling Time for Handmade Goods
Amazon Handmade informed sellers it was shortening their Handling Times settings in an email this week titled, “Change to Default Handling Time options.” Its reasoning: it said 85% of the time, sellers fulfill orders within 1 day of receiving an order.
ecommercebytes.com
Amazon And Saudi Exports Work Together To Launch A “Saudi Made” Storefront On Amazon.sa
Amazon Saudi Arabia today launched a ‘Saudi Made’ storefront on Amazon.sa, featuring thousands of local products certified by the ‘Made in Saudi’ (MIS) program. Aligning with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, the dedicated storefront promotes locally manufactured products to millions of Amazon customers, accelerating the development of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) and entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia.
cbnme.com
What Happens When Ads Generate Themselves?
Every tech company talks a big game when it comes to generative AI, but most of them are still figuring out how exactly to add it to their products. Microsoft is putting a chatbot in Windows and content-generation tools in Office. Google is testing out AI-written answers to searches. Meta is trying out AI-generated “stickers” and bots based on celebrity likenesses.
nymag.com
Tips and Tricks
Amazon Dupes: What They Are and How to Sell Your Own in 2023
Amazon “dupes” have taken social media by storm in 2023 and emerged as a fascinating ecommerce niche for both buyers and sellers. Budget-conscious consumers look for more affordable near-replicas of popular, upscale items.For sellers, delving into the realm of Amazon dupes can be a promising venture as consumers search for more budget-friendly products.
junglescout.com
With low prices and same-day deliveries, Amazon is the first stop for many online shoppers. But how do you know you’re getting what you pay for on Amazon? The trouble is, you don’t. Thousands of shoppers have complained that they’ve received counterfeit or mislabeled products from Amazon. In a post on r/BuyItForLife, a subreddit dedicated to built-to-last products, a Reddit user speculated about why this may happen so frequently.
yahoo.com
Podcasts
Amazon Unboxed 2023 New Releases
Join us for a fascinating discussion as we unpack Amazon unBoxed 2023, exploring the most exciting releases such as generative AI and more that can level up your advertising game. Our co-host from Pacvue, Anne Harrell provides us with a unique perspective on the advertising industry. Let’s start with our chat with Jeff Cohen, Principal Evangelist, Advertising API at Amazon, as he shares his transition journey and the biggest differences he’s noticed.
helium10.com