Welcome to RepricerExpress’ weekly round-up of the top five stories from the world of Amazon and ecommerce.
Amazon offers free shipping on all orders for the holidays: Nathaniel Meyersohn at CNN Business reports that for the first time, Amazon is offering free shipping on all US holiday orders in an effort to add new Prime members and juice the season’s sales numbers. Last year, Amazon shoppers without Prime memberships had to spend at least $25 to earn free shipping, but Amazon is waiving the purchase minimum starting Monday to give “customers even more convenient and faster delivery options,” the company announced. Continue reading…
Amazon is now reportedly going to split its HQ2 into 2 locations after more than a year of intense speculation: Sean Wolfe at Business Insider UK reports that it has been 14 months since Amazon declared its intention to build a second headquarters. The company’s year-long selection process had a decidedly sweepstakes-like feel to it. Amazon laid out its expectations for what it wanted in a second hometown and promised a bonanza of 50,000 jobs and a $5 billion investment to whichever lucky city it picked. Continue reading…
Amazon’s AbeBooks backs down after booksellers stage a global protest: Alison Flood at The Guardian reports that an “extraordinary and unprecedented” global protest from antiquarian booksellers has forced the Amazon-owned secondhand marketplace AbeBooks to backtrack on its decision to pull out of several countries. AbeBooks had told bookshops in countries including Hungary, the Czech Republic, South Korea and Russia that it would no longer support them from 30 November. Continue reading…
Amazon told employees it would continue to sell facial recognition software to law enforcement: Nick Statt at The Verge reports that Amazon has come under fire of late for the licensing of its controversial Rekognition system, a powerful piece of facial recognition software, to government and law enforcement agencies, with the most recent development involving revelations that Amazon met with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over the summer to strike a deal for Rekognition use. Continue reading…
Amazon is mailing a printed holiday toy catalogue to millions of customers: Eugene Kim at CNBC reports that Amazon is shipping a holiday toy catalogue, titled “A Holiday of Play,” to millions of customers starting this month, the company’s spokesperson confirmed in an email to CNBC. “Amazon is excited to offer a new way for customers to shop for toys this holiday season,” Amazon said in a statement. The catalogue comes with a distinctly retro look, evoking memories of old Toys “R” Us catalogues that made the now-defunct toy retailer so successful. Continue reading…
Bonus: 6 Great Black Friday Tips for Amazon Sellers
Quote of the week:
“Lighten up, just enjoy life, smile more, laugh more, and don’t get so worked up about things.”
Kenneth Branagh, Actor
Have a great weekend!
