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Online retail is always a race to the bottom, as mostly all anyone cares about is price. When I was in the business, it was a continual hunt for new/unknown pr
by arprocter 11y ago
Online retail is always a race to the bottom, as mostly all anyone cares about is price. When I was in the business, it was a continual hunt for new/unknown products we could sell at a decent profit before other sellers got on them and the margin got trashed.
For a niche product it seems a little odd that Amazon would make their version half the price. Then again, they may argue that theirs is a 'budget' version, and thus it doesn't compete with the original.
- csours 11y agoUg. I know exactly what you are saying, but at least some people also care about quality; however, in the race to the bottom it is very difficult for the customer to assess quality and for the supplier/manufacturer to maintain quality. I don't know if there is a solution to this.
- bitL 11y agoI think most e-commerce companies end up the following: -1-2 person companies where one person does competitive software and the other hunts for products with good margins to sell - large established companies with special deals with e-tailers no small sellers can compete with
- cc438 11y agoThe reason AmazonBasic's offerings tend to dominate their respective markets isn't because they are the cheapest option. They dominate because they are the cheapest option which you can trust to work and continue working for whatever is considered a reasonable lifespan for that category of good. You're right in that people care about quality, it's just that quality products don't have to cost as much as you think they do.
- LoSboccacc 11y agogot a camera stand. averageish quality at discount price, and I think that's a very good formula, perfect fit for an online seller. not to shoddy to get a bad name, good enough for what it does and priced among the cheapo option of which is the better.
- freyr 11y agoAmazonBasics provides a nice counter-balance to all the garbage that's currently being sold on Amazon and propped up by fake reviews. They're offering a solid no-frills product at a good price.
- unchocked 11y ago"Your margin is my opportunity" -- Jeff Bezos
- morgante 11y agoa) The product is not that niche. If it were truly niche, Amazon wouldn't be interested. b) Even at $20, I'm sure they are making plenty of profit. It's basically just a hunk of metal.