September 22, 2009
OpEd By the ZippyCart Shopping Carts Content Team
As part of Amazon.com’s continued effort to expand the product selection for their house brand, they have announced the debut of AmazonBasics. This new brand focuses on consumer electronics, but the current selection is limited to small items like blank DVDs, CDs, and various cables. It is not expected that Amazon will move into selling high end items like HDTVs. Many people are speculating that this trend will continue as Amazon looks to become the Wal -Mart of the web, where almost everyone shops to get a deal. Not only do these private label products from Amazon help consumers get a quality item for an affordable price, it also generates a higher profit margin. Since Amazon also allows other companies to sell consumer electronics, it will be interesting to see how those relationships progress and if some sellers will leave. Selling branded products like this is not a new concept as supermarkets have been successful with this technique for years and it has not stopped merchants from selling their products along side the store branded versions.
The official press release was, oddly enough, released by Amazon over the weekend and it quickly has become the hot topic in ecommerce news. The most successful Amazon branded product to date is, without a doubt, the Kindle which has been one of the hottest selling items online this year. Kindle sales have dominated the e-reader market with Sony a distant second and no other company doing anything significant beyond that. Hopefully this move will continue to benefit revenue and profitability but only time will tell how popular normal Amazon branded products will be that are not as unique as the Kindle.
Amy is the co-founder of ZippyCart. She went to school for film in Cleveland, Ohio and ended up working in the field of viral video marketing, which eventually led her to her real profession: SEO. When she's not writing for ZippyCart, she can be found out and about Seattle, WA.
