Amazon is turning the tables on Chinese low-end competitors Shein and Temu. A couple of weeks ago, the e-commerce giant launched Amazon Haul, a low-cost online storefront that sells merchandise priced $20 or less, with most items under $10. Experts say they see good potential in Amazon’s new venture, but there’s no guarantee of success as the price war in low-end e-commerce intensifies.
“Amazon has always worked to provide customers with the widest possible selection, low prices, and a convenient shopping experience, and we offer more than 300 million products across more than 35 product categories,” Amazon’s new site states. “This wide selection is made possible by our selling partners worldwide who offer hundreds of millions of items in our store.”
The e-commerce giant’s foray into the low-end e-commerce market with “crazy low prices” coincides with the flaring up of online price wars that are hurting earnings and revenues. On Nov. 21, PDD Holdings, the parent of Temu, reported disappointing third-quarter sales and profits.
Wall Street doesn’t like these reports from high-flying companies, and so sent PDD Holdings share price down by more than 10 percent in early afternoon trading. Amazon’s shares also were down, by more than 2 percent.
The quick markdowns of PDD and Amazon raise questions about whether Amazon’s launch of Haul was the right move.
Still, Jeanel Alvarado, a retail expert for The Retailboss, said she believes Amazon Haul will compete well against Shein and Temu by targeting younger, budget-conscious shoppers who prefer shopping on their phones.
“Amazon can beat Shein and Temu in two main areas: the first is fast shipping time,” she told The Epoch Times.
“Unlike Shein and Temu, Amazon can fulfill orders in days, while its counterparts take weeks to deliver to customers. The second is its potential to adapt quickly, and scale gives Amazon its massive global network of sellers, fulfillment centers, and AI-powered shopping insights.”
Greg Zakowicz, a veteran marketer and senior e-commerce expert at Omnisend, also sees good potential in Amazon’s new discount site, saying it will bring trust to the market.
“While Temu and Shein have surged in popularity in the past two years due to their ultra-low prices, our recent Omnisend survey of 4,000 people found that only 7 percent trust Temu, citing issues like long shipping times and poor product quality,” he told The Epoch Times.
That’s where the opportunity is for Amazon.
“If Amazon takes advantage of its strengths, such as a much stronger reputation among U.S. shoppers or its massive distribution network, it could pose a challenge to Temu and Shein—especially as the Chinese platforms face regulatory scrutiny,” Zakowicz said.
Nonetheless, Zakowicz sees Amazon struggling to maintain quality and transparency while competing on price—issues that Temu and Shein already have difficulty addressing.
“Still, Omnisend’s data show that 16 percent of Americans see Temu as Amazon’s primary competitor, indicating that this market shift is already happening,” he said. “With Walmart also opening its doors to thousands of Chinese vendors, the landscape for ultra-cheap goods is set to become much more competitive.”
Alvarado sees a parallel between Amazon’s Haul strategy and Facebook’s Threads.
“It similarly reminds me of how Mark Zuckerberg introduced Threads, and it gained massive adoption in a relative amount of time, now seen as X’s biggest competitor,” she said. “It further solidified Facebook’s dominance in social media networks and its ability to tap into the needs of its customers.”
Isaac Gross, the owner of IG PPC, said he believes that Amazon’s new discount front is a smart move to finally fight Shein and Temu but that there is no guarantee the move will be successful.
“Of course, Amazon brings in the biggest brand in town with the largest logistics network,” he told The Epoch Times. “Amazon will need to match ultra-low prices with the trendy offerings of its competitors.”
Gross sees maintaining the balance between affordability and quality as critical for Amazon in appealing to budget-conscious shoppers without losing its reputation.
Jacob Edwards-Bytom, the founder of commerce consultancy UltraLabs, said Amazon’s new venture needs to add a curated experience to its model to allow customers to view the company.
“Amazon has not always been seen as the go-to source for inexpensive clothing or home goods despite its reputation for convenience and wide availability,” he told The Epoch Times.
“To stand out, Amazon must ensure its bargain shops are well-publicized. To match Shein and Temu’s customized marketing strategy, Amazon must provide a carefully curated experience. This approach might help Amazon reclaim its market share if it successfully develops a customized shopping experience in addition to its current logistical advantages.”
