EcomCrew - [Crew Review] The death of FBA?

Bigger isn't always better

Fulfillment NOT by Amazon

Amazon’s warehouses can be as huge as a couple of football fields. This is impressive. But will it be the ruin of FBA?

The pandemic caused a surge of online shopping, and fulfillment services are as busy as ever. But while Jeff is ordering more Boeing planes and experimenting with drones, Walmart has another approach: Local Fulfillment Centers (LFCs).

According to Walmart, an LFC is a “compact, modular warehouse built within, or added to, a store.” Translation: smaller fulfillment centers built nearer customers.

To make the process more efficient, Walmart has partnered with the following micro-fulfillment specialists:

• Alert Innovation
• Dematic
• Fabric

Now, we’re not saying Walmart will beat Amazon’s fulfillment system that easily.

But here’s the thing. Amazon only has about 295 fulfillment centers globally. Walmart has over 10,000 stores in 24 countries. This could mean customers will be getting their orders within hours instead of 1 to 2 business days.

Can Amazon keep up?

This problem is big enough for you to want to pull your hair out. Fortunately for Jeff, he’s unable to.

Google Will Disallow Targeted Ads Sales Based on Browsing History

Nothing is really free.

Sure, well-researched articles online are readily available, but we’re paying for them through data collected by advertisers.

Targeted ads obtained through third-party cookies are very valuable to sellers. But they do raise privacy issues. Safari and Firefox have been blocking them for a while, and Google wants to follow in their footsteps.

The company also emphasized that once third-party cookies are phased out, they “will not build alternate identifiers to track individuals as they browse across the web.”

It is now “working with the broader industry on the Privacy Sandbox to build innovations that protect anonymity while still delivering results for advertisers and publishers.”

Copy-Paste, Amazon Style

Screengrab from Peak Design’s video

What do the two bags above have in common? Aside from their almost identical design, they both used to be called the “Everyday Sling.”

What don’t they have in common? Their brands.

One is from Peak Design and the other is from (you guessed it) Amazon! The former recently released a hilarious video about the similarities between the two products, and people are expressing their support for the original.

Amazon now calls its version the “Amazon Basics Camera Bag.” But—to borrow from Shakespeare—What’s in a name? That which we call an infringement by any other name would smell as foul.

(But for legal purposes, we have to emphasize that nothing has been proven yet, and Peak Design hasn’t even taken any legal action.)

The Everyday Sling by Peak Design retails at $99.95, while Amazon’s camera bag is at $35.14.

To learn more about IP infringement, we have articles about whether or not you can sue Amazon and what intellectual property issues you should be concerned with as an Amazon seller.

Masking the Bias

Aside from copy-pasting designs, Amazon is also getting some backlash from mask makers.

Masks have become part of our OOTDs for over a year now, and many entrepreneurs saw a business opportunity in them. And because governments all over the world are limiting our movement, more of these bad boys are being sold online.

So why are some mask-making companies not happy with Amazon, Google, and Facebook?

When the pandemic started, people were scrambling for masks, making it harder for medical workers to make sure they have enough supplies. There was also the danger of selling counterfeit masks online.

So Google and Facebook banned the sale of medical-grade masks. Amazon, on the other hand, limits their availability to shoppers.

But while Google and Facebook implement a uniform policy for all sellers, Amazon seems to have its favorites.

According to The New York Times, Amazon allows the sale of N95 masks, but its algorithm favors big companies such as Makrite and Kimberly-Clark. And small sellers are buried in search results, with some even blocked from selling to buyers who don’t have an Amazon business account.

So if you’re looking to take a chance at selling masks and other pandemic-related products, you might want to check the law and the platform’s policies first.

Biden to Workers: Make Your Voice Heard

He didn’t exactly mention Amazon workers. But just like comments by passive-aggressive high schoolers, we know whom President Biden was referring to when he told “workers in Alabama and all across America” that they have the right to unionize.

He said in a video posted in a tweet: “It’s not up to me to decide whether anyone should join a union. But let me even be more clear. It’s not up to an employer to decide that either.”

Amazon horror stories about poor working conditions are not uncommon. The company is the second private employer in the United States next to Walmart. If its workers decide to unionize, that will be a significant change in America’s labor environment.

Mini Crew Reviews

Less like Hitler. Amazon quietly changed its app icon after some users pointed out the blue “tape” used resembles Hitler’s mustache so much. It’s now replaced by a design that looks like the silhouette of an inverted Save icon.

Helium 10 reaches 1 million users. The tool that won two of the four categories of EcomCrew’s 2020 Best Amazon software is celebrating its millionth user signup. Congratulations, guys!

Elevated Ecommerce bids farewell. If you were an avid listener of Ben Cummings, you’ll surely miss his voice as he discontinues his podcast. After more than 400 episodes, Elevated Ecommerce is no longer adding to its playlist as Ben concentrates on paying clients and customers.

But don’t worry. The EcomCrew podcast is here to stay. We have new episodes every Tuesday and every other Thursday.