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Yeah, I predicted this to happen in some blog comment two years ago. Amazon is great in doing what they do, I think what they would pursue now will be companies

Yeah, I predicted this to happen in some blog comment two years ago. Amazon is great in doing what they do, I think what they would pursue now will be companies like them that are already well represented and branded in a certain segment and niche. Shoes are a good segment and niche. It doesn't spoil so it can be inventoried, it's fashionable so it can garner high markups, and it's compact and not hard to handle. This was a cheap buy to pick up a brand, marketing, warehouses, labor, and management talent. I think a real game changer would be if Amazon bought Newegg.

jrockway 17y ago
What would Newegg add for Amazon? Admittedly, Newegg is the first thing that comes to mind when I want computing hardware (i.e., a motherboard or something), but Amazon apparently has all that stuff too. I just did a search and found that most of what I would need to build a computer is available via Amazon Prime. Hmm, now I want a new computer :)
- alaskamiller 17y ago
  The massive supplier relationships and pricing information and logistics and the west coast / east coast warehouses / fulfillment centers that rivals Amazon's operations.
imajes 17y ago
Uhm, fashion is one of the hardest things to deal with. Fashion inventory is almost worthless a season or two after it launches. What zappos sells are what are labeled FMCG - fast moving consumer goods. In this instance, you want almost no inventory, but extremely effective supplier partnerships and delivery cycles. What they have is a really engaged consumer community who can help them predict what they might want to buy soon. If they use the metrics efficiently enough, they can stock the really popular lines and get-the-numbers-right on the slower but better margined products. If you could run zappos/amazon scale and drop ship from manufacturer... well - that's the goal. (See timbuk2 et al for more).
- jrockway 17y ago
  Are shoes "fashion"? I would not be able to tell the difference between a shoe from 10 years ago versus one from today (and somehow, I've accumulated a lot of shoes; running, cycling, sneakers, sandals...). I am sure some of Zappos' customers care about the latest and greatest, but many probably don't.
- jonknee 17y ago
  The shoes I'm wearing now were purchased on Zappos and the design dates back to 1966. Fashion can have staying power.
gojomo 17y ago
It would become even harder for Amazon to claim they have no duty to collect sales taxes on sales to California addresses if they owned California-based NewEgg.

jrockway 17y ago

What would Newegg add for Amazon? Admittedly, Newegg is the first thing that comes to mind when I want computing hardware (i.e., a motherboard or something), but Amazon apparently has all that stuff too. I just did a search and found that most of what I would need to build a computer is available via Amazon Prime. Hmm, now I want a new computer :)

alaskamiller 17y ago
The massive supplier relationships and pricing information and logistics and the west coast / east coast warehouses / fulfillment centers that rivals Amazon's operations.

imajes 17y ago

Uhm, fashion is one of the hardest things to deal with. Fashion inventory is almost worthless a season or two after it launches. What zappos sells are what are labeled FMCG - fast moving consumer goods. In this instance, you want almost no inventory, but extremely effective supplier partnerships and delivery cycles. What they have is a really engaged consumer community who can help them predict what they might want to buy soon. If they use the metrics efficiently enough, they can stock the really popular lines and get-the-numbers-right on the slower but better margined products. If you could run zappos/amazon scale and drop ship from manufacturer... well - that's the goal. (See timbuk2 et al for more).

jrockway 17y ago
Are shoes "fashion"? I would not be able to tell the difference between a shoe from 10 years ago versus one from today (and somehow, I've accumulated a lot of shoes; running, cycling, sneakers, sandals...). I am sure some of Zappos' customers care about the latest and greatest, but many probably don't.
jonknee 17y ago
The shoes I'm wearing now were purchased on Zappos and the design dates back to 1966. Fashion can have staying power.

gojomo 17y ago

It would become even harder for Amazon to claim they have no duty to collect sales taxes on sales to California addresses if they owned California-based NewEgg.