For Third Party (3P) sellers, Amazon is currently waiving the long-term storage fees for any ASINs setup before December 5, 2018. Amazon said: “When we receive your new-to-Amazon ASINs in qualifying categories by December 5th, we’ll reimburse you for any long-term storage fees on those ASINs for up to six months.” With this incentive, Amazon aims to attract more sellers and new product selection to Seller Central.
Seller Central can be more profitable for Amazon than 1P/Vendor Central sales. Most Seller Central categories charge a 15% referral fee, with an FBA fee charged for the picking/packing/shipping of the item, inventory storage fees and a professional selling monthly fee. These factors combined with the fact that Seller Central is completely self-service, suggest that Amazon may want to push more sellers to Seller Central than to Vendor Central.
As you grow with Amazon, a hybrid selling strategy—selling products through Vendor Central and Seller Central—may be beneficial. By selling in both marketplaces, brands have a broader range of content, product pricing, funding and promotional options. If you have direct fulfillment, EDI capabilities and tax tracking capabilities, selling in both marketplaces likely offers more profitable business. In Navazon’s learning seminar, we break down the pros and cons of each selling method and share our ASIN profitability calculator so that you are armed with the tradeoffs of each or both platforms.