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RAPAPORT...
L2 Think Tank conducted an extensive study on Amazon.com's listings of 27,517 products from 315 brands across six verticals, one of which was watches and jewelry. While Amazon has become the defacto way to "shop online," L2 concluded that the retailer is now muscling brands and others in a "manner that makes Walmart look cuddly." Nonetheless, Amazon.com accounts for one in four online purchases, offers the largest selection of product (in part due to third-party vendors) and upholds a superior retail fulfillment process. The report found that Amazon's price competitiveness is, however, facing competition, especially from online channels at Walmart, Sears, Target and Best Buy. Still, watches and jewelry prices on Amazon were lower than anywhere else 81 percent of the time for 206 comparable items, according to L2's findings. Amazon's marketplace enables multiple sellers to offer the same product, but platform algorithms for the "Buy Box" option promotes the merchant with the best balance of sales performance and low product price, according to L2. The group stated that 90 percent of Amazon's shoppers purchase product featured in the "Buy Box" rather than searching through other options.
L2 noted that 23 percent of third-party vendors across the watches and jewelry category offered lower prices on the "Buy Box" platform to gain the competitive advantage. Only fashion brands competed less against each other with price as 9 percent of vendors offered lower prices through the "Buy Box." Meanwhile 69 percent of beauty product suppliers, 59 percent of hair care vendors, 56 percent of personal care products and 34 percent of home care product sellers competed by lowering their prices on that platform.
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