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Amazon to Shut All U.S. Pop-Up Stores as It Rethinks Physical Retail Strategy

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Re: Amazon to Shut All U.S. Pop-Up Stores as It Rethinks Physical Retail Strategy

#101

Post by jdietrich »

1stcity3rdcoast wrote: post #61
Judgmentality wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Amazon (for all their warts) is much more adept at keeping customer experience in their crosshairs. Except when it comes to selling counterfeit merchandise. This is more than just a nitpick, they are cannibalizing their core business. What I don't know, and I assume they do know, is how bad is the problem. Is it impacting 1% of customers who ultimately leave their platform (which could easily be offset by other fac…

There’s been a lot of heated discussion about this on HN previously, but it would be interesting to know 1) how big of a problem it is, and 2) what people are buying that seem to have this problem. My household buys on average 10-20 items from amazon each week for many years (combined personal, my business, my wife’s business) and have yet to receive a counterfeit item. Am I doing something different?

Amazon's last 10-K report specifically listed counterfeiting as a risk factor for investors. Quote:

"Under our seller programs, we may be unable to prevent sellers from collecting payments, fraudulently or otherwise, when buyers never receive the products they ordered or when the products received are materially different from the sellers’ descriptions. We also may be unable to prevent sellers in our stores or through other stores from selling unlawful, counterfeit, pirated, or stolen goods, selling goods in an unlawful or unethical manner, violating the proprietary rights of others, or otherwise violating our policies. Under our A2Z Guarantee, we reimburse buyers for payments up to certain limits in these situations, and as our third-party seller sales grow, the cost of this program will increase and could negatively affect our operating results. In addition, to the extent any of this occurs, it could harm our business or damage our reputation and we could face civil or criminal liability for unlawful activities by our sellers."

https://ir.aboutamazon.com/node/32656/html

Anecdotally, it's trivially easy to find obviously counterfeit products on Amazon. For example, the eighth result when I search for "yeezy" is this listing for an obviously fake pair of Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 v2 shoes. In many product categories, Amazon looks more like a seedy flea market than a multinational retailer. I have no idea what proportion of supposedly legitimate listings are for counterfeit products, but I have personally received counterfeit SD cards and USB chargers.

https://www.amazon.com/HEIMA-TRADE-Lightweight-Breathable-Ru...

https://www.flightclub.com/yeezy-boost-350-v2-white-cblack-r...

Re: Amazon to Shut All U.S. Pop-Up Stores as It Rethinks Physical Retail Strategy

#102

Post by jmcgough »

1stcity3rdcoast wrote: post #61
Judgmentality wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Amazon (for all their warts) is much more adept at keeping customer experience in their crosshairs. Except when it comes to selling counterfeit merchandise. This is more than just a nitpick, they are cannibalizing their core business. What I don't know, and I assume they do know, is how bad is the problem. Is it impacting 1% of customers who ultimately leave their platform (which could easily be offset by other fac…

There’s been a lot of heated discussion about this on HN previously, but it would be interesting to know 1) how big of a problem it is, and 2) what people are buying that seem to have this problem. My household buys on average 10-20 items from amazon each week for many years (combined personal, my business, my wife’s business) and have yet to receive a counterfeit item. Am I doing something different?

Hair products are heavily counterfeited on Amazon - I only buy them direct from companies now. High end shampoo/conditioner/treatments can cost $50 a bottle for large sizes. They're just colored plastic bottles with text and some gel inside. Trivially easy to copy the bottle, costs essentially nothing to produce, and only obvious that it's fake to the consumer that receives it, not others involved in the supply chain.

Re: Amazon to Shut All U.S. Pop-Up Stores as It Rethinks Physical Retail Strategy

#103

Post by Udik »

heymijo wrote: post #35
kristianc wrote: post #27

This is more or less what Amazon is known for - experimentation, A/B testing and dumping ideas quickly. I'm pretty in awe that Amazon seems to have (at least) three bricks and mortar retail concepts on the go at the same time : Go, pop up stores and Whole Foods, and is only now deciding to cut one of them. Amazon's commitment to going with the data goes so so deep.

What about Amazon makes it successful with having multiple versions of the same concept at one time compared to Google's* lack of success doing the same? *At least my impression of Google and their structure/incentive system that pushes different groups to pursue the same thing and not succeed at any. Messaging is at the forefront in my mind.

What surprises me about the Google attitude is that it seems to go against one of the basic rules of entrepreneurship: that it's the execution that counts, not the idea. In other words Google seems to throw multiple ideas hoping for some to be successful, but doesn't really seem to put an effort to push them forward despite the initial difficulties. It's a fundamentally insecure attitude: they hope to be blown by the success of something rather than working hard to make it succeed.

Re: Amazon to Shut All U.S. Pop-Up Stores as It Rethinks Physical Retail Strategy

#104

Post by angstrom »

1stcity3rdcoast wrote: post #61
Judgmentality wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Amazon (for all their warts) is much more adept at keeping customer experience in their crosshairs. Except when it comes to selling counterfeit merchandise. This is more than just a nitpick, they are cannibalizing their core business. What I don't know, and I assume they do know, is how bad is the problem. Is it impacting 1% of customers who ultimately leave their platform (which could easily be offset by other fac…

There’s been a lot of heated discussion about this on HN previously, but it would be interesting to know 1) how big of a problem it is, and 2) what people are buying that seem to have this problem. My household buys on average 10-20 items from amazon each week for many years (combined personal, my business, my wife’s business) and have yet to receive a counterfeit item. Am I doing something different?

It's possible your sample is not representative of the larger sample.

My understanding on this matter is Amazon is going the way of giving the brand owners more control of the brand as one part of the solution. Ultimately they know their product(s) the best and are likely most aware of matters no heuristic is going to catch. Maybe it can be used to train an automated counterfeit identifier since this solution only scales for large brands that have resources already dedicated to the problem. You still get stuck with a McDowell's vs McDonald's problem of brand erosion from very similar knockoffs that tread the legal grey line.

Re: Amazon to Shut All U.S. Pop-Up Stores as It Rethinks Physical Retail Strategy

#105

Post by swarnie_ »

true_tuna wrote: post #68

Stop posting wsj articles. They’re just advertising for the wsj walled garden.

Sorry but this is increasingly the state of journalism. You either do a good job and need to be payed somehow or you churn out absolute trash and hope enough clickbait will keep you afloat.

Re: Amazon to Shut All U.S. Pop-Up Stores as It Rethinks Physical Retail Strategy

#106

Post by CodeWriter23 »

Judgmentality wrote: post #50
k_sh wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Follow-through. Google is infamous for this sequence of events, time and time again: 1. We made this great new thing that's gonna change the way you verb! Hope you enjoy it! 2. (1-5 years of product stagnation) 3. Hey, thanks for the all the good times. We're closing the thing at the end of the year. Amazon (for all their warts) is much more adept at keeping customer experience in their crosshairs.

> Amazon (for all their warts) is much more adept at keeping customer experience in their crosshairs. Except when it comes to selling counterfeit merchandise. This is more than just a nitpick, they are cannibalizing their core business. What I don't know, and I assume they do know, is how bad is the problem. Is it impacting 1% of customers who ultimately leave their platform (which could easily be offset by other fac…

> Except when it comes to selling counterfeit merchandise.

Bought Gold Toes on Amazon. Squeezed my feet causing numbness. My wife reported the same with her much smaller feet. Manufacturing defects too. Nice, higher end semi-gloss cards and packaging, looked legit. Sold in packs of 6 pairs.

Bought Gold Toes at Macy's. Comfortable fit, no numbness. No manufacturing defects. Not letting my wife touch them. Sold in packs of 8 pairs. BTW $3 per-pair price actually less than Amazon even though not on sale at Macy's.

Re: Amazon to Shut All U.S. Pop-Up Stores as It Rethinks Physical Retail Strategy

#107

Post by CodeWriter23 »

1stcity3rdcoast wrote: post #61
Judgmentality wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Amazon (for all their warts) is much more adept at keeping customer experience in their crosshairs. Except when it comes to selling counterfeit merchandise. This is more than just a nitpick, they are cannibalizing their core business. What I don't know, and I assume they do know, is how bad is the problem. Is it impacting 1% of customers who ultimately leave their platform (which could easily be offset by other fac…

There’s been a lot of heated discussion about this on HN previously, but it would be interesting to know 1) how big of a problem it is, and 2) what people are buying that seem to have this problem. My household buys on average 10-20 items from amazon each week for many years (combined personal, my business, my wife’s business) and have yet to receive a counterfeit item. Am I doing something different?

Do the listings say "Sold and shipped by Amazon"? If so, Amazon has procured it. If it says "Fulfilled by Amazon", anybody in the world sent the product with a matching UPC label to the fulfillment center and Amazon shipped it.

Re: Amazon to Shut All U.S. Pop-Up Stores as It Rethinks Physical Retail Strategy

#108

Post by canofbars »

cududa wrote: post #91
MarkMc wrote: post #47

This is an example of US economic dynamism. In France or even the UK people would be saying, "How can we let such a large, profitable company lay off people so easily?"

That’s one of many reasons people don’t start businesses in France or experiment economically.

Its all fun and games until you are the one who's life is used for some corporate experiment.

Re: Amazon to Shut All U.S. Pop-Up Stores as It Rethinks Physical Retail Strategy

#109

Post by aikah »

MarkMc wrote: post #47

This is an example of US economic dynamism. In France or even the UK people would be saying, "How can we let such a large, profitable company lay off people so easily?"

> This is an example of US economic dynamism. In France or even the UK people would be saying, "How can we let such a large, profitable company lay off people so easily?"

Try to get a loan from a bank or rent an apartment in France without a serious salary/long term employment contract. That's also the difference between US and these countries. Come back here when French people have easier access to cheap credit like in US. French banks don't like to take risks. What people say is irrelevant.

Re: Amazon to Shut All U.S. Pop-Up Stores as It Rethinks Physical Retail Strategy

#110

Post by cududa »

canofbars wrote: post #108
cududa wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s one of many reasons people don’t start businesses in France or experiment economically.

Its all fun and games until you are the one who's life is used for some corporate experiment.

I never said I feel no sympathy for them, or that there shouldn’t be a social safety net. I’m more critiquing France’s approach to business
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