Competition is coming to Temu and Shain: Products will cost less than $20
Amazon has launched a new store called Haul, in which the price of products on sale is capped at $20, in an attempt to compete with low-cost retailers such as Temu and Shein.
The online shopping giant introduced Haul as a mobile-only experience in its shopping app, targeting users in the US.
The company says customers can expect “incredibly low prices” on Haul products, which are “worth the wait” of up to two weeks for delivery.
Amazon’s Chinese e-commerce rivals have seen rapid growth in recent years, but have also faced criticism over the environmental impact of producing and delivering an increasing number of cheap products.
Amazon (Freepik)
„Ago and Shein have faced criticism for exploiting loopholes in import laws, but also for being wasteful and environmentally irresponsible,” Sucharita Kodali, a retail analyst at Forrester, told BBC News.
“This effort faces the same challenges,” she added, referring to the Amazon Haul platform.
Haul marks Amazon’s long-awaited entry into the market for lower-cost products with longer delivery times – a business model that has enabled companies like Temu and Shein to rise.
However, regulators around the world are increasingly expressing concern about the growth of platforms that sell bulk products at very low prices. In October, the European Commission launched a case against Temu over concerns that it was not preventing the sale of illegal products.
Products up to 10 and 20 dollars
Amazon has placed low prices at the center of its offer through Haul. In addition to the maximum price of $20, the company stated that most products will cost less than $10.
As examples, the press release cited a set of three razors and an “elegant necklace, bracelet and earring set” available for just under three dollars. Free shipping will be available on orders of $25 or more, with a delivery time of one to two weeks.
“Finding great products at very low prices is important to customers, and we continue to explore ways we can work with our partners to offer products at ultra-low prices,” said Dharmesh Mehta, Amazon’s vice president of global partner selling services.
Kineski Amazon, Temu (Freepik)
The company says the “beta” version of the Haul experience will allow all products to be sold with Amazon warranties, providing customers with assurance of product quality and safety.
Mehta stated that it is still “early stages” for the new shopping vertical and that customer feedback will be carefully listened to in order to “enhance and expand the platform in the coming weeks and months.”
Kodali added that the project is not without risks for Amazon. She told the BBC there was evidence that consumers were “increasingly fed up with poor quality products and slow delivery.”
If the products disappoint customers and are unprofitable for Amazon, “I don’t expect Haul to survive very long,” she concluded.
Source: BIZLife
Photo: Freepik
Source: bizlife.rs
