Amazon cuts back private labels, opening opportunities for SMEs
In a major shift, Amazon has drastically scaled back its private label brands, completely eliminating 27 of its 30 clothing brands, including Lark & Ro, Daily Ritual, and Goodthreads. Matt Taddy, vice president of Amazon Private Brands, said in a statement that the company has looked to eliminate some in-house products after determining they didn’t resonate with customers.“We always make decisions based on what our customers want, and we’ve learned that customers seek out our biggest brands – like Amazon Basics and Amazon Essentials – for great value with high quality products at great price points,” Taddy said. And this reduction may aim to ease antitrust pressures on Amazon.
Amazon tweaks search to boost newer sellers
Amazon has updated its search page to show product star ratings before review counts. This benefits newer items with high ratings but fewer reviews. However, it reduces the edge for established products with more feedback. While driving quality, it may also disrupt the monopoly of top sellers.
Amazon ups seller fees, sparking concerns
Starting October 1st, Amazon will levy a 2% fee (minimum $0.25) on sellers using its Seller Fulfilled Prime program(SFP) to handle their own shipping. While SFP enables Prime badge display, the new fees will squeeze margins for participating sellers. Some may opt to raise prices to maintain profits as costs climb.
Peak season FBA fees increased by Amazon
Amazon will hike its Fulfillment by Amazon fees for sellers from October 15th through January 14th to cover peak holiday sales. Amazon says its rates are still 30% below other 3PLs and cites similar seasonal charges by major carriers.
TikTok US to end ‘Storefront’ feature, focuses on in-app shopping
TikTok will terminate its ‘Storefront’ ecommerce model in the US by end of August. This currently allows product links to Shopify and other third-party sellers. After the change, external transactions and links won’t be permitted – directing sales through TikTok’s platform.
Temu hits 100M users amidst quality concerns
By Statista, Temu now has over 100 million active U.S. users – up from just 6 million last October. The growth has driven monthly transaction volumes upward. However, numerous complaints about counterfeits and product quality present challenges for Temu to overcome.
Shopify partners with True Fit to boost online fashion sales
Shopify announced an integration with True Fit’s AI-powered sizing recommendation engine aimed at increasing conversion rates and reducing returns for fashion ecommerce. Leveraging its vast fit dataset, True Fit helps match customers with the right apparel and footwear sizes. The partnership provides a 7-day free trial to encourage usage.
