“Etsy? Who cares about Etsy Q1 earning call when we can review Amazon’s?” Believe it or not, the world of ecommerce is more than just Amazon. Etsy is a large marketplace that is much more relevant than Amazon for many small business owners. I found that Etsy is working on relevant projects over the last year. And as the competition from Chinese giants is threatening many companies, I thought it would be interesting to see if/how Etsy approaches it.
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As a kid, going to a fast-food restaurant was an exciting experience. After all, I didn’t get the chance to get a Happy Meal very often, and I was always looking forward to my next visit to Mickey D’s. As an adult, however, I couldn’t care less. If I crave a Big Mac, I can drive anytime to the nearest McDonald’s. That’s exactly how many customers feel when a retailer does too many flash sales; it doesn’t feel special anymore.
As I explained in a recent LinkedIn post, Amazon seems to keep doing more and more sales events. We were used to Prime days once a year in the summer, but in the past year, we have also experienced Prime Big Deal days last fall, and now Amazon’s Spring sale just ended.
Today, I’d like to discuss this shift in Amazon’s strategy. The e-commerce landscape has changed a lot since the pandemic, and Amazon had to update its strategy to maintain its market share. In a second part, I want to discuss the drawbacks of this strategy and how it may affect the e-commerce giant negatively.
Continue readingWhen I first heard about Temu, my knee-jerk reaction was to think it would be a Shein for random items, from kitchenware to toys. I also thought the target audience would be similar, Gen Z, especially after I saw some young influencers showing off their “Temu hauls” on TikTok.
Recent reports proved me wrong: Boomers placed on average 5.6 orders last year on Temu, while Gen Z only ordered 2.6 times.
Continue readingHave you found yourself needing a toaster-shaped desk lamp? How about a $1.28 keychain stapler? Or a 200-pack of men’s ankle socks? If so, I’ve got you covered. Temu has it all, and quickly became one of the most downloaded shopping apps in the US, offering millions of relatively inexpensive products shipped directly from China, targeting low-income Americans.
In recent news, Temu announced they would open their marketplace to US and European sellers. While this sounds like an obvious way to expand their operation, this information surprised me and made me wonder about Temu’s long-term strategy. Will they still pursue low-cost items, or are they attempting to diversify their offer?
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