Bloomberg reports that Amazon’s efforts to create a private-label women’s fashion presence may not be going as well as hoped.
“Apparel makes up 88 percent of all Amazon private label brands, but only 1 percent of all private label sales,” according to Jungle Scout, a data-research firm. “Women’s fashion, which makes up most of the company’s clothing brands, is struggling the most, with more than 4 of 5 Amazon women’s clothing brands selling fewer than 100 items per month, according to the report.”
The story notes that Amazon has been making moves to improve its fortunes in this segment: “Amazon is seeking to improve its clothing sales with strategies such as introducing a try-before-you buy program last year for its Prime members, which allows customers to order clothing, keep and pay for what they want and ship the rest back. Amazon also entered a partnership with Kohl’s Corp. last year to let customers make returns at select Kohl’s locations.”
But the reality to this point seems to be that while Amazon has been able to move the needle in private label with some categories - think batteries and electronics - there are some where it continues to struggle.
“Apparel makes up 88 percent of all Amazon private label brands, but only 1 percent of all private label sales,” according to Jungle Scout, a data-research firm. “Women’s fashion, which makes up most of the company’s clothing brands, is struggling the most, with more than 4 of 5 Amazon women’s clothing brands selling fewer than 100 items per month, according to the report.”
The story notes that Amazon has been making moves to improve its fortunes in this segment: “Amazon is seeking to improve its clothing sales with strategies such as introducing a try-before-you buy program last year for its Prime members, which allows customers to order clothing, keep and pay for what they want and ship the rest back. Amazon also entered a partnership with Kohl’s Corp. last year to let customers make returns at select Kohl’s locations.”
But the reality to this point seems to be that while Amazon has been able to move the needle in private label with some categories - think batteries and electronics - there are some where it continues to struggle.
- KC's View:
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Somehow, this doesn’t surprise me. I’m not sure I’d put a lot of faith in Amazon having a lot of expertise in the area of fashion. It just seems beyond its reach … as opposed to electronics, which seems entirely within its skill set.
