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- Will your Prime Day deals cost you more than they make? [MDSR #48]
Will your Prime Day deals cost you more than they make? [MDSR #48]
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Million Dollar Sellers
June 13, 2025
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An exclusive network of eCommerce sellers generating over 8 billion in annual sales.
Hot Off The Presses 📰
From courtroom shake-ups to cutting-edge AI, this week’s headlines signal major shifts across the eCommerce landscape. We’re breaking down what matters most for Amazon sellers navigating a volatile and high-stakes summer.
⚖️ Courts fight back on tariffs (temporarily)
A federal court blocked most of President Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs, ruling that imposing sweeping duties via emergency powers exceeded presidential authority.
The Trump administration responded by appealing — and an appellate court has temporarily stayed the ruling, allowing tariffs to remain in effect while the case proceeds.
These tariffs will be reviewed when final briefs are due by June 5 (plaintiffs) and June 9 (administration).
Small-business plaintiffs, including five toy and import companies, successfully argued the administration overstepped under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
📌 Seller Impact: Tariff enforcement is still uncertain. Maintain sourcing flexibility and build buffer scenarios rather than banking on immediate relief.
📉 The fallout: Higher costs, lower demand
The removal of the de minimis rule is already biting: Temu’s U.S. daily users have plummeted nearly 50%, and it’s a similar story over at Shein.
UPS has implemented new surcharges on fuel and large packages, raising shipping costs for heavily boxed products.
As tariffs and surcharges drive consumer prices higher and squeeze their spending power, big-box retailers like Walmart and Target have passed along increases of up to 38% on essentials.
📌 Seller Insight: Margin compression is real. Examine logistics, packaging, and product pricing. Shift toward impactful, tariff-transparent products.
✅ Amazon changes sellers need to plan for
Amazon’s “Bend the Curve” initiative removed billions of inactive or suppressed listings — now sellers need to maintain catalog health or risk invisibility.
FBA capacity limits remain tightened, and sellers who experienced up to 75% cuts in May will likely continue to face restricted capacity.
New “deal fees” are now in effect — promotions carry added cost, calling for sharper ROI assessment ahead of Prime Day
Do you offer fast delivery via Amazon Premium Shipping? On-time delivery requirements will soften this month — but sellers in the program can expect to be evaluated more frequently.
📌 Seller Tip: Audit your catalog and active deals. Prioritize high-quality listings and legitimate review strategies over short-term gimmicks.
💡 Seller opportunities and emerging market niches
Walmart now permits the use of Amazon multi-channel fulfillment, making it easier for sellers to expand with more sales channels.
Amazon Marketing Cloud’s new retail purchase data set offers 5x deeper purchase history so sellers can target shoppers even more intelligently.
According to new research from Walmart, the trust gap between AI-powered product recs versus influencer endorsements is smaller than you might think — so sellers should make sure chatbots know about their products.
Apart from the soaring popularity of clothing on Amazon, niche areas like trading cards, bachelorette party favors, and back-to-school items are showing promising momentum and resilient demand in a volatile market.
📌 Seller Moves: Lean into multichannel expansion and smarter ad targeting, and don’t overlook niche trends or AI discovery — these fast-moving opportunities can drive outsized returns in a volatile market.
📊 Now over to you...What do you think of this edition of our newsletter? |
Million Dollar Advice 💸
With tariffs shifting left, right, and center — and supply chains under more pressure than ever — tight inventory control isn’t optional, it’s mission-critical.
Selling across Amazon, Shopify, Walmart, and more? You need real-time visibility to avoid stockouts, overstock, and costly fulfillment delays.
A solid multi-channel inventory strategy helps you stay agile, forecast demand, and keep every channel in sync. That means more sales, fewer headaches, and no more scrambling when markets shift overnight.
💣 Will your Prime Day deals cost you more than they make?
Amazon’s deal fee structure has seen some changes in 2025, but Lightning Deals and Best Deals during peak events will remain unchanged at a hefty $500 and $1000 flat fee respectively.
That means your Prime Day promotions could cost you significantly if your offer doesn’t drive serious volume. To illustrate, let’s model how much of their gross sales sellers will keep after running a Prime Day Lightning Deal after Amazon’s $500 flat fee in 2025.
Gross Deal Sales | Net Revenue After $500 Flat Fee | % of Sales Lost to Fee |
$2,500 | $2,000 | 20% |
$5,000 | $4,500 | 10% |
$7,500 | $7,000 | 6.7% |
$10,000 | $9,500 | 5% |
$15,000 | $14,500 | 3.3% |
That $500 flat fee hits hardest at lower sales volumes. If your deal doesn’t move at least $5K+ in revenue, the economics can get tight — especially once you factor in ad spend, FBA fees, and COGs.
The key takeaways?
Run your numbers before committing. A low-converting deal could cost more than it brings in.
Raise AOV through bundling or cross-sells to make the fee more efficient.
For lower-ticket ASINs, consider coupons instead — they’re lower risk: $5 + 2.5% of redemptions.
Looking for more info? 🔗 Check out Amazon’s official deal fee FAQ
Think this comparison is helpful? Feel free to pass it along 🙂
Learn from Neil Patel at MDS Day NYC 🗽
That’s right — the founder of NP Digital and one of the most trusted voices in digital marketing is joining us live at MDS Day New York 2025.
Neil will take the stage to share what’s actually working in marketing right now — plus where the savviest eCommerce brands are headed next. Whether you're scaling to 8 figures or optimizing your 9-figure engine, these will be insights you won’t want to miss.
Expect no-fluff strategies, behind-the-scenes insights, and the kind of candid conversations you won’t hear on podcasts. Whether you're doing 7, 8, or 9 figures, this is where real operators level up together.
🗓️ June 18, 2025 | ⏱️ 10AM - 7PM | 📍 New York City
🎟️ Tickets are almost gone — lock in your spot now!
eCom Stock Watch 📊
Click on the table below or view the full size data here.
Big seller energy, small group vibes 🍸
We’re bringing the MDS community offline and into the real world — with a series of free, in-person events built for serious eCommerce pros.
Whether you’re selling on Amazon, Shopify, TikTok, or beyond, these casual meetups are your chance to connect over good food, strong drinks, and better conversations — with operators who actually get what it takes to scale past $1M+.
No pitches. No pressure. Just smart people swapping stories, ideas, and insights.
📍Miami Seller Social | Thursday June 19th, 2025
📍Singapore ecombrunch | Friday June 20th, 2025
📍Dubai ecomlunch | Sunday June 22nd, 2025
📍Charlotte Ecom Founder Social | Friday June 27th, 2025
📍MDS Connect @ Super Zoo 2025 (Las Vegas) | Wednesday August 13th, 2025
💥 Space is limited — if you're thinking about coming, RSVP now to claim your spot.
Did you see that post 📲
Turns out some counterfeiters really are just putting sawdust in a capsule — and Amazon sellers are stuck dealing with the fallout…
One of the biggest problems Amazon has is counterfeit products, specifically supplements.
Increased reports of fake vitamins, protein powders, and other health products being sold on the platform have surged in recent years.
— Dan Go (@FitFounder)
3:31 PM • May 27, 2025
Until Next Time ✌️
As always, thanks for sticking with us until the end.
If you’d care to share your thoughts on this newsletter, we’re all ears. Just hit reply to sound off.
See you next time with more of the latest and greatest content you need to succeed this year 🔥
Sincerely,
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*To qualify, you must be a full-time seller or brand owner and do at least 1 million in verified annual revenue. Will Amazon’s Returnless Resolutions solve the returns debacle? [MDSR #30]