Amazon.com has long been one of the premier online destinations for people looking to buy just about anything, and they’ve also allowed people and businesses alike to sell their own wares through the main site. Now, though, it seems the site is going to expand those options for small businesses in particular, and potentially give people more access to products created by these smaller firms.
The major retail site recently announced a plan to start an online store that sells small business products that will not be available anywhere else, according to a report from the Associated Press. The new “Amazon Exclusives” store will specifically allow companies that have funded product development via Kickstarter, as well as offerings that were featured on the ABC show “Shark Tank,” and more. Fortunately for smaller businesses, if they sell via Amazon Exclusives, they can also put those same products on their own websites or in their real-world stores.
This latest effort is one that’s become typical for Amazon, the report said. While the company makes a lot of money every year, a large portion of it is re-invested into expansion opportunities. Clearly, Amazon saw the offerings of small businesses across the country as a potentially big market for growth, and has therefore taken the step to make it a little easier for these companies to reach consumers, and vice versa. As with any other item sold through the original Amazon marketplace, the online retail giant is likely to take a healthy percentage of each sale.
Growing opportunity
This new offering from Amazon may highlight a particular area of potential growth for small businesses. Many experts have said that companies with relatively few employees probably don’t do enough to show off their wares and make them available online, simply because a lot of companies don’t have the best websites. And while this may seem like a costly effort to undertake at this juncture, it’s generally seen as a critical one for companies looking to succeed going forward. Even a minor revamp to make the site more attractive could go a long way.
Owners who want to free up the money to do this kind of thing might do well to consider the benefits of cutting their various costs, including those for small business insurance. If they can find more affordable errors and omissions insurance, for instance, they may be able to save thousands of dollars annually.
