Amazon charges exorbitant fees to Marketplace sellers and adds to the cost of everything sold on Amazon. Are you aware of who is the seller every time you buy s

Amazon charges exorbitant fees to Marketplace sellers and adds to the cost of everything sold on Amazon. Are you aware of who is the seller every time you buy something? When the seller is not Amazon, do you know how much of the price is going directly to Amazon? Is it worth it for what Amazon provides you? In my category Amazon takes 15% of every sale. That’s even true for FBM where Amazon never lays eyes or hands on the merchandise. Also still true even though I have always taken perfect care of every customer. Good luck selling anything on Amazon without paying even more for Amazon advertising, a closed system with high prices. And then there’s the Prime badge and FBA, more expenses that you can hardly afford not to pay. Buyers are trained to demand them and Amazon reaps the profits. If you buy from my website I pay a small transaction fee, shipping, and advertising. I can afford to sell for much less, making my customers just as happy or better since I can personalize the service in ways Amazon just does not allow. But I can’t lower my prices anywhere off Amazon because they will retaliate by burying my product where nobody will find it. Amazon customers (I admit I am one, too) are paying higher prices for almost everything they buy. But they/we are also supporting a marketplace regime that forces prices up everywhere. Everyone, not just Amazon customers, gets to pay the higher Amazon price. My website customers are essentially subsidizing the profits that Amazon is making from my sales on their platform. You might think you want someone big and strong like Amazon protecting you from scammy sellers. If they wanted to do that they would get rid of them and keep the good ones. Instead they keep the bad ones around so you get to experience their protection racket. You’re sticking up for the bully and paying for the privilege.