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Is this dropshipping?

Zooreis Posted messages 19 Status Member -  
flo88 Posted messages 28485 Registration date   Status Contributor Last intervention   -

Hello,

I bought an item on eBay but the package came from Amazon. Indeed, on Amazon the same item costs €11.50 and the seller is selling it for €16.10 on eBay.

Do you think this is indeed dropshipping? Because after leaving a negative review, the seller told me this in a private message, here is his message:

"Dear customer, indeed we work on several marketplaces, a neutral review would be fairer for us because working only on one marketplace is not viable for small sellers. We cannot apply the prices of very large sellers, thank you for your understanding."

What do you think? Some may not be able to apply the same prices, that's fine, but then why did it come from Amazon...

5 answers

  1.
    brucine Posted messages 24846 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   4 169
     

    Hello,

    If there is dropshipping, it is more logical and economical to do it not from a distributor, but directly from the wholesaler or manufacturer, for example, Chinese, but there is no way to know: it is also possible that the third-party seller is only using Amazon's logistics capabilities.

    Generally speaking, and regardless of what certain TV ads claim, the giant is not a philanthropist and is not necessarily always the cheapest: it simply has the ability to be so due to its volumes and the choice it makes to drive prices down on certain products to make up for it on others.

    I hate this way of rating everything and everyone about everything, especially since it doesn't hold much significance: whatever the seller's commercial system, as long as the service provided was correct, they are right to say that no one forced us to make this purchase and that the fact that we later found it cheaper elsewhere does not justify a negative comment.

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  2. Zooreis Posted messages 19 Status Member 3
     

    I left a negative comment because if I'm using eBay, it's because I don't want to go through Amazon specifically (them who destroy returned items).

    I listened to dropshipping trainers on YouTube, and many do this well on eBay via Amazon. They even have answers for everything; when a customer asks why it comes from Amazon, they say they are just using the warehouses to store the merchandise (or something like that).

    That's why I think it's dropshipping, but I don't want to leave a negative comment if that's not the case.

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    1. brucine Posted messages 24846 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   4 169
       

      If YouTube said so, it's undoubtedly an unassailable scientific argument.

      Nothing demonstrates to us that the return policy for unsold goods from another supplier is different, whether or not they use Amazon's services.

      The latter, indeed implicated in this matter because the cost of storage was believed to be higher than that of a second life, tells us it has changed its policy on this issue and recycles returned items into new, used, or donated condition as long as their condition allows it, unless that condition leaves no alternative.

      The question has nothing to do with any commercial agreements that a supplier may have with Amazon, whether it's called dropshipping or any other term, since in all cases these suppliers retain responsibility for what is stored or transits through Amazon, independently of Amazon.

      https://www.futura-sciences.com/tech/actualites/technologie-amazon-change-politique-invendus-eviter-destruction-produits-88170/
      https://www.aboutamazon.fr/actualites/durabilite/que-se-passe-t-il-lorsque-vous-cliquez-sur-retour

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  3. flo88 Posted messages 28485 Registration date   Status Contributor Last intervention   Ambassadeur 5 168
     

    Hello

    Nothing shocking.

    And I doubt that he goes through Amazon but rather through Amazon's wholesale branch, Amazon Business.

    This is perfectly normal; all resellers do this. The particularity of Amazon is that they can manage delivery, which not all wholesalers can do; this is indeed Amazon Pro's (Business) strength.

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  4. Zooreis Posted messages 19 Status Member 3
     

    I asked a dropshipping trainer on YouTube and here is his answer: I quote "If the merchandise does not pass through the hands of the eBay seller, then yes, it's dropshipping."

    I can do that too, list a product for sale on eBay at a higher price, then order it on Amazon and have the item sent directly to the customer when they place an order.

    Moreover, the return address on eBay shows the seller's personal address and not that of Amazon.

    I don't know about Amazon Business, but in my opinion, Amazon is not going to bother to partner with other competing platforms.

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  6. flo88 Posted messages 28485 Registration date   Status Contributor Last intervention   Ambassadeur 5 168
     

    I can do that too, put a product for sale on Ebay for a higher price

    Yes and no, in France you must be registered with the trade register, most marketplace resellers are micro-entrepreneurs registered under this regime. Buying and reselling for a higher price is the basis of commerce...

    I don't know Amazon Business but in my opinion, Amazon is not going to bother partnering with other competing platforms

    They do it themselves, they don't care, you can very well buy products on Amazon that they will deliver to you via AliExpress for example, but repackaged as Amazon upon arrival in Europe.

    Common practice for everyone, RueDuCommerce, CDiscount, etc...

    In the industry, it is also widely spread when you are obliged to buy through B2B platforms because they are the only ones authorized in the company's panel.

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