Amazon launches two initiatives aimed at selling returned or unsold products
Amazon has introduced two new fulfillment programs designed to make it easier for businesses that sell on Amazon to put customer returned items and overstock back on sale, giving their products a second life.
These programs are part of the company’s commitment to business partners and sustainability, as they offer an additional way for sellers to benefit from their sales on Amazon. These programs are expected to give a second life to more than 300 million products that would otherwise be returned to vendors.
“We are committed to building a sustainable and environmentally friendly business model, supporting the communities where we work, and reducing the impact of climate change for future generations,” said Libby Johnson McKee, director of Amazon WW Returns . ReCommerce and Sustainability. “These new services – FBA Liquidations and FBA Grade and Resell – are examples of how we are leveraging our resources to foster a circular economy, maximize reuse and reduce our impact on the planet.”
The “FBA Liquidations ” program is already available in Spain, the United States, Germany, France and Italy, and will soon be available in the United Kingdom as well. It allows business partners to benefit from Amazon’s wholesale settlement channel and its technology to give returned or unsold products a second life. Prior to this new service, merchant partners had to receive returns or excess product, or otherwise authorize Amazon to include these products in its donation program. Starting now, businesses that sell on Amazon will have a new and easy way to recover some of the value of their products by liquidating their inventory through a trusted supplier.
On the other hand, commercial partners who want to resell returned items can take advantage of the “FBA Grade and Resell ” program, a service already available in the United Kingdom that will be implemented at the end of the year in the US, and that will arrive in Spain, Germany , France and Italy before the end of 2022.
This program offers the option to sell returned items as “used” items, rather than returned or donated. With this new service, trading partners can automatically submit returned items to the Grade and Resell program. These will be evaluated by Amazon and assigned to one of four standard conditions: Used – Like New, Used – Very Good, Used – Good, and Used – Fair. The program allows trading partners to price items based on their condition and manage pricing, advertising, and sales using existing services, just as they do with their new items.