Remember my IP complaint that went sideways.
Well the Manufacturer came up with a permanent solution. No one is allowed to sell on any 3p sites anymore ( ebay, amazon, walmart etc…).
For the first time they sent out a revised dealer agreement and added the clause. The IP issue was the reason they made this decision. “Amazon is uncontrol able. so the only solution is for no authorized sellers on Amazon.”
Unfortunately, this has increasingly become the position of many ROs.
The writing was on the wall several years ago when Birkenstock pulled out, but Amazon simply doesn’t care.
So the only options are your own website or b&m, right?
Amazon is losing all of this brand’s business, but I am not certain that they care or that it will even affect their bottom line, unfortunately.
Things will only change when the qty of brands goes from a handful to a tsunami.
That’s never going to happen because Amazon is easy money for established brands. Candy from a baby kind of thing.
Based on my sales alone, it will cost amazon a few million.
When I was the only seller I was limited by how much I could order and store.
Once the competition came they started adding even more products.
To Amazon this is probably nothing.
Is there maybe a possibility of getting them to manu. for your own brand name???
Theoretically, yes.
Most of their items are first aid, tactical and trauma kits. I can just buy the individual items and put together a kit myself under my own brand name.
I could also just buy their kits and modify them, I am debating if that is worth it,
I would have to warrantee the products. Any recalls would also be on me.
So it is not without risk.
It’ll cost them a lot less than that.
Part of the gap will be filled by unauthorized sellers. Presumably if the company is no longer supporting the channel, they won’t put a lot of effort into policing it. And if the item actually goes out of stock because the mfg takes enforcement actions, Amazon will just steer customers to similar products when their brand is searched.
I was just going to mention this. I’m also seeing, though, an increasing number of manufacturers (including industry leaders) that are implementing 3P programs, where they’ll select a small number of trusted dealers to carry their products and restrict everyone else – normally those who haven’t constantly engaged in a race to the bottom, tried to make unauthorized changes to the listings, etc. They would frown upon anyone who would mention Amazon in the last decade, but they’ve come to realize that, other than the big box retailers, this is where the money is, and appreciate efforts from dealers like us on this forum, who try to uphold the integrity of the marketplace to the extent possible (oxymoron, I know).
I would be private labeling the S out of their products. You could rake it in. Recalls and insurance are baked into the same pie and sometimes negotiable with the manufacturer in volume.
Restricted distribution with defined limitations was commonplace in the past, when manufacturer’s actually had salesmen who visited their resellers and human interactions were commonplace.
When many manufacturers began taking orders on the internet for reseller inventory, the human touch was lost as well as many of the controls on who was authorized. Territorial restrictions were among the first to be lost.
Since I am an old crank, and I have no vested interest in seeing the absence of restrictions, I am pleased to see a return to the old ways.
I wouldn’t even worry about the recall issue.
Serious product liability issues are extremely rare and actual financial liability (on the off chance an issue does occur) can be mostly avoided if you incorporate properly.
Technically if a serious issue occurred that bankrupted the manufacturer, the retailer can be fully liable for it anyway whether it’s private labeled or not, since it’s whoever in the supply chain that has the deepest pockets that ends up with the most lawsuits.
Lake, it is great to have your take on this situation, after your decades of experience in retail.
I would assert medical devices and certain types of products have inherent risk associated with them. Go try and buy a magento for a Cessna and you will see you are paying for the certifications more than the item value.
I was on the manufacturer side before I was on the retail side.
And learning the retail side was not easy. Business schools give retail no respect. It was tough to learn and tougher to make money in than any other way I earned a living.
IMO it is not easier today, it is much harder. In the old days, we had personal relationships develop with our suppliers, personal relationships with our competitors and knew many of our customers.
But we got certificates and plaques when were became authorized sellers for companies. Filled up a wall with those.
My 2 oldest suppliers I know the staff by name and they know me. So it still exists.
I doubt it. There are two cases. Most brands aren’t worth bothering with, and our years of sales are identifying those brands which the platform can afford to lose. For brands like yours, they have a ton of data from which to create a product (or, with all that “authenticity” and “compliance” paperwork they have, knock one off) to fill that niche. At this point, Amazon loses nothing except the extra margin they get from ads, fulfillment, returns, etc.
I’ve always said the most valuable asset we bring to the platform is data, not product. Eventually, Amazon will grow to the point where they can source, store and ship everything but the longest of long tails. By then, it will be far too late to do anything about it.
But perhaps even more important is that they already know which are worth the effort, and not every product listed on the site is needed.
I no longer have to. Since I am a proven entity on Amazon they have given me an Exemption. So far I have been the only one granted the ability to sell on 3p sites.
WIN WIN for me.
Watch your back. Being told you are the only one does not mean they will enforce their IP in the future.