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I work at Data Alchemy. We're an Amazon Merchant who runs our system on a search engine, built by search engineers who used to be at Looksmart and Loggly. Amazo

I work at Data Alchemy. We're an Amazon Merchant who runs our system on a search engine, built by search engineers who used to be at Looksmart and Loggly. Amazon does merge ASINs occasionally to help improve quality of listings (and merging comments), but we've found focusing the algos on the listings that both sell well and get a lot of good comments and support work really well. Our store on Amazon is the result of this search algorithm running on about 1.7 million listings: https://www.amazon.com/s?me=AZHZ102UTKBMA https://www.amazon.com/s?me=AZHZ102UTKBMA

martincmartin 10y ago
That's very cool! How do you get the inventory? Do you buy from the original sellers and re-sell on Amazon? I notice your listings have "sold by DataAlchemy, fulfilled by Amazon."
- kordless 10y ago
  Our software allows us to order, track and pack high velocity items which are then sent to Amazon fulfillment centers. We also do a fair amount of direct shipping to customers. Inventory comes in via a variety of ways, including API feeds, FTP uploads, etc. We buy from manufacturers and distributors and are adding new ones all the time!
vkjv 10y ago
I think something might not be working. The very first thing I noticed as a pack of 10 CR2032 batteries for $75 when there is also a pack of 5 for $5. Along with other ridiculous prices, like $40 for a standard tape measure.
- kordless 10y ago
  In my experience, most pricing "errors" come from the listing owner/creator changing the SKU or quantity set on the listing. When this happens, it takes us a few days to catch up with the listing or remove it entirely if we think it's low quality (meaning we think it's a pack of 100 and it's really a pack of 10). This can become even further complicated when a listing changes right as velocity comes on for it as well. We basically have to forget what the listing did before so we can price it accordingly moving forward. Pricing can also be a direct result of a velocity + stock calculation. If we are running low on FBA stock and don't have a good supply for the item ATM, the system may use a not-so-great source price on the item to calculate what it will cost us to refill stock. Sometimes items move around, or we lose suppliers for items, which cause the system to adjust the price accordingly. If you are searching from Amazon proper (not our store) for those items in question, it is very likely Amazon won't show you our listings on them because of the price delta. I would note we definitely utilize customer feedback to constantly improve our system's accuracy.
- hga 10y ago
  I just bought that 100% standard in the US Stanley 25' tape measure (pretty much everyone uses it including tradesmen) for 9.71 straight from Amazon, it's 9.88 today, and DataAlchemy just happens to have it's own entry, which notes I bought the same item, but doesn't list all the other vendors who will sell it for, at the very most, 3/4ths of the cost including shipping. Ah, same pattern for the Dewalt DW2166 45-Piece Screwdriving Set, your price $37 shipped, not than anyone's likely to wait a month for the earliest estimated delivery date, vs. 14.45 Prime from Amazon. Ditto: DEWALT DPG82-11 Concealer Clear Anti-Fog Dual Mold Safety Goggle DEWALT DW1354 14-Piece Titanium Drill Bit Set Klein Tools NCVT-2 Dual Range Non-Contact Voltage Tester DEWALT DCB205-2 20V MAX XR 5.0Ah Lithium Ion Battery, 2-Pack (679 plus generious free shipping, vs. 150 Amazon) DEWALT DCS387B 20-volt MAX Compact Reciprocating Saw with Tool I just happened to have bought a house built in 1910 6 weeks ago, so I have a general sense of what these sorts of items go for, as well as this item I might get later after I move in: Hakko 599B-02 Solder Tip Cleaning Wire and Holder I'm finding it impossible to come up with innocent explanations for the combined set of facts listed above, when your entry eliminates comparison shopping.
  - NOSHSHNACKERS 10y ago
    I bought a house made in 1901 20 years ago - we didnt have the Internet like they do now. I had to get all my stuff at Lowes.
  - kordless 10y ago
    A couple of things to keep in mind: If you browse other listings on Amazon, there are merchants who sell on item listings for a variety of prices. Most listings are owned by manufacturers, not merchants. All of the listings you mention here are NOT owned by us, but we do list against them. Picking one of your examples, we have the primary URL: https://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-DW1354-14-Piece-Titanium-Drill/dp/B0045PQ762 https://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-DW1354-14-Piece-Titanium-Drill... Then we have our store's URL: https://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-DW1354-14-Piece-Titanium-Drill/dp/B0045PQ762/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?m=AZHZ102UTKBMA&s=merchant-items&ie=UTF8&qid=1467756568&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=DEWALT+DW1354+14-Piece+Titanium+Drill+Bit+Set https://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-DW1354-14-Piece-Titanium-Drill... Clicking on https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0045PQ762/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&condition=new https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0045PQ762/ref=dp_ol... results in a view of all merchants selling on this listing. We're on the second page of 3 pages (last page is empty). At $25.57 we are not the most expensive, nor the least expensive. The lowest listed price is $14.99 by Amazon themselves. They probably got a good deal on them. As you note, there is little reason for someone to order that particular item from us, on that listing. The same can be said of "Home Plus Hardware" which is selling it for $33.71. I would note that your final blaming statement appears to demand an explanation for something I said incorrectly. I'm not providing a blow by blow "explanation" here for our pricing, but I would point out that I didn't say we always had the best prices on all items. We don't. I did, however, indicate that we tend to be able to find good listings using our algorithms. That's not to say we can always get good prices on the items we're selling. That's another problem to solve entirely!

martincmartin 10y ago

That's very cool! How do you get the inventory? Do you buy from the original sellers and re-sell on Amazon? I notice your listings have "sold by DataAlchemy, fulfilled by Amazon."

kordless 10y ago
Our software allows us to order, track and pack high velocity items which are then sent to Amazon fulfillment centers. We also do a fair amount of direct shipping to customers. Inventory comes in via a variety of ways, including API feeds, FTP uploads, etc. We buy from manufacturers and distributors and are adding new ones all the time!

vkjv 10y ago

I think something might not be working. The very first thing I noticed as a pack of 10 CR2032 batteries for $75 when there is also a pack of 5 for $5. Along with other ridiculous prices, like $40 for a standard tape measure.

kordless 10y ago
In my experience, most pricing "errors" come from the listing owner/creator changing the SKU or quantity set on the listing. When this happens, it takes us a few days to catch up with the listing or remove it entirely if we think it's low quality (meaning we think it's a pack of 100 and it's really a pack of 10). This can become even further complicated when a listing changes right as velocity comes on for it as well. We basically have to forget what the listing did before so we can price it accordingly moving forward. Pricing can also be a direct result of a velocity + stock calculation. If we are running low on FBA stock and don't have a good supply for the item ATM, the system may use a not-so-great source price on the item to calculate what it will cost us to refill stock. Sometimes items move around, or we lose suppliers for items, which cause the system to adjust the price accordingly. If you are searching from Amazon proper (not our store) for those items in question, it is very likely Amazon won't show you our listings on them because of the price delta. I would note we definitely utilize customer feedback to constantly improve our system's accuracy.
hga 10y ago
I just bought that 100% standard in the US Stanley 25' tape measure (pretty much everyone uses it including tradesmen) for 9.71 straight from Amazon, it's 9.88 today, and DataAlchemy just happens to have it's own entry, which notes I bought the same item, but doesn't list all the other vendors who will sell it for, at the very most, 3/4ths of the cost including shipping. Ah, same pattern for the Dewalt DW2166 45-Piece Screwdriving Set, your price $37 shipped, not than anyone's likely to wait a month for the earliest estimated delivery date, vs. 14.45 Prime from Amazon. Ditto: DEWALT DPG82-11 Concealer Clear Anti-Fog Dual Mold Safety Goggle DEWALT DW1354 14-Piece Titanium Drill Bit Set Klein Tools NCVT-2 Dual Range Non-Contact Voltage Tester DEWALT DCB205-2 20V MAX XR 5.0Ah Lithium Ion Battery, 2-Pack (679 plus generious free shipping, vs. 150 Amazon) DEWALT DCS387B 20-volt MAX Compact Reciprocating Saw with Tool I just happened to have bought a house built in 1910 6 weeks ago, so I have a general sense of what these sorts of items go for, as well as this item I might get later after I move in: Hakko 599B-02 Solder Tip Cleaning Wire and Holder I'm finding it impossible to come up with innocent explanations for the combined set of facts listed above, when your entry eliminates comparison shopping.
- NOSHSHNACKERS 10y ago
  I bought a house made in 1901 20 years ago - we didnt have the Internet like they do now. I had to get all my stuff at Lowes.
- kordless 10y ago
  A couple of things to keep in mind: If you browse other listings on Amazon, there are merchants who sell on item listings for a variety of prices. Most listings are owned by manufacturers, not merchants. All of the listings you mention here are NOT owned by us, but we do list against them. Picking one of your examples, we have the primary URL: https://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-DW1354-14-Piece-Titanium-Drill/dp/B0045PQ762 https://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-DW1354-14-Piece-Titanium-Drill... Then we have our store's URL: https://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-DW1354-14-Piece-Titanium-Drill/dp/B0045PQ762/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?m=AZHZ102UTKBMA&s=merchant-items&ie=UTF8&qid=1467756568&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=DEWALT+DW1354+14-Piece+Titanium+Drill+Bit+Set https://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-DW1354-14-Piece-Titanium-Drill... Clicking on https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0045PQ762/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&condition=new https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0045PQ762/ref=dp_ol... results in a view of all merchants selling on this listing. We're on the second page of 3 pages (last page is empty). At $25.57 we are not the most expensive, nor the least expensive. The lowest listed price is $14.99 by Amazon themselves. They probably got a good deal on them. As you note, there is little reason for someone to order that particular item from us, on that listing. The same can be said of "Home Plus Hardware" which is selling it for $33.71. I would note that your final blaming statement appears to demand an explanation for something I said incorrectly. I'm not providing a blow by blow "explanation" here for our pricing, but I would point out that I didn't say we always had the best prices on all items. We don't. I did, however, indicate that we tend to be able to find good listings using our algorithms. That's not to say we can always get good prices on the items we're selling. That's another problem to solve entirely!