this yearIn June, Tian Wei was closed more than 200 account numbers, and the store was detained up to 200 million yuan. In order to save the account, he ran to Seattle and sold his house to keep the company alive.
Like Tian, there are many Chinese sellers who have been banned. After the major changes of the platform, their business has been affected to varying degrees, but it is almost everyone's consensus to actively save themselves and not give up cross-border business.
two hundredmanyStoresBe sealed，seller200 million capital was withheld
Tian WeishiAfter 1995, he was a young boss in the cross-border seller circle. He did e-commerce business in Shenzhen, the most active place in the industry. When he joined Amazon in 2017, he was one of the top 3 sellers of Tmall's sex products. With its own advantages, Tian Wei also sells this category of products on Amazon, and the cross-border trip is smooth.
Tian Wei introduced,The company has developed well in 2018 and 2019. At the best time, 13000 orders can be issued one night at one independent station, and the daily order volume of all stores at five Amazon stations (U.S., Japan, Germany, Singapore, Brazil) is up to 15000, and six factories work overtime to supply goods for them,In 2019, the highest sales reached 800 million yuan,The company's e-commerce operation and supply chain employees add up toMore than 700 people.
As the company continued to develop, Tian Wei encountered the biggest change: overnightMore than 200 Amazon accounts have been blocked, and brands have been linked.
According to Tian Wei's memory,On June 7, he received a phone call from an employee, saying that he could not log in to his Amazon account. He received an email in his email, which showed that the shop was closed because of the purchase order. Later, he learned more about the situation and found that all accounts of the company had been sealed.
(Sealed email received by Tian Wei's store)
After learning that all accounts have been blocked, Tian Wei is in a complicated mood. Previously, he also experienced a ban, but not so large-scale, this time the consequences are a bit serious. In retrospect, Tian Wei still said:"At that time, I didn't expect it to be so serious, and the platform didn't give me any chance."
On June 7, the account was closed, and Tian Wei was not the first seller to be reorganized by Amazon. As early as the end of April this year, it was reported that Pattoson and other top selling accounts had been blocked. At that time, the number of blocked sellers and brands had increased dramatically from 3C categories. The number of involved sellers had also dropped rapidly from the top sellers in the first tier to the middle sellers in the second tier, and the categories involved were more extensive.
Under the continuous rectification of Amazon, Tian was recruited."In May this year, a seller friend in Guangzhou sent me a message saying that several of his stores had been blocked due to order swiping. He asked me if I had received the blocked email from Amazon. I said what happened. We also swiped the order, and the account was still good, but not blocked. At that time, I was still taking a fluke, thinking that everyone's operation mode was different, and that the rectification of Amazon related violations was not a one size fits all. Because there was order swiping operation before, Amazon They will send an email warning, and in serious cases, they will delete the link to swipe the order.
Then we arrivedIn June, more and more sellers were blocked because of their order swiping. I realized that the situation was wrong. This time, more than one or two stores should be closed. Later, I really hit the bait and felt that the problem was serious. Amazon may want to uproot the sellers who swipe the order this time. In its own case, the brand is involved in this seal. As long as the brands under your company's name, the platform will also be closed. "Tian is called.
Tian Wei was sealedMore than 200 accounts, all of which are Amazon accounts of his company, have been hung up. The total amount of funds in more than 200 stores involved reached more than 200 million yuan.The account was hung up, and the funds were withheld. The company was plunged into an unprecedented crisis.
Running to Seattle, trying to unlock the account
At the beginning of the account sealing, Tian Wei tried to unseal the account. He asked many peers whether there was a good way to unseal the account and whether the account was sealed. The results told by the peers were negative and everyone was in a mess. Later, he consulted againIndustry service provider, asked about the account unsealing and was still told that there was no way to deal with it.
Under the attack of the number closure, Tian Wei also saw the current situation of his peers. Like him, everyone's situation was very bad, and there was no sign of the account being unsealed. It is understood that there is no new progress in the sales of some trees, Patoson and Zebao. After the account is closed, the sellers have no way to solve it. The only thing they can do is to wait.
"Before, there were a lot of orders every day, each department performed its own duties, and I was busy all day. After all accounts were closed, everyone was free at once. I didn't know what to do. I came to the office to play with my mobile phone, and sometimes I was chasing after the drama. My whole mental state was different."Tian Wei introduced.
Because the company's Amazon store could not log in, the employees had nothing to do. Tian Wei's Amazon operation team in Shenzhen could not afford the time consumption, and many employees chose to leave one after another. The staff of the operation team is reduced toMore than 30 people, plus supply chain employees,At present, the company's employeesMore than 700 people, down to about 100.
Seeing the current situation of the company, Tian Wei was very worried. He tried every means to unseal his account, but he could not see any hope. In order to save the Amazon account, he made a bold decision: go to the Amazon headquarters office to ask for an explanation.
this yearIn October, Tian Wei contacted his friends in the United States and embarked on a flight to Seattle. He and his friends met the staff of Amazon headquarters in Seattle, the United States.
According to Tian Wei, when it comes to blocking his account,Amazon staff took out a thick booklet, which is equivalent to a detailed description of his company, and clearly recorded the information of the company's order printing. You can find almost every piece of information you have printed on the brochure.
Tian Wei was a little desperate when he saw the record book.
"No matter how good your disguise is, a fake is a fake. Amazon can definitely find you. For example, if you ask a friend to swipe a bill, they think you won't be caught. But in fact, the platform will know that your transfer records may be exposed, and the seller's swiping operation can hardly escape Amazon's system. So Amazon is not unable to catch the seller's swiping, but it's a question of whether or when it will touch you." Tian Wei said.
Tian Wei's heart was heavy when he came out of the Seattle office. He had already vaguely predicted an end: Amazon caught illegal orders, and he was caught, with evidence left, and the company was bannedMore than 200 accounts may not come back.
When it came to the problem of order brushing, Tian Wei admitted that he did have the behavior of order brushing, and the action of order brushing was not small. He said,The company bought it when it was the most aggressiveMore than 500 mobile phones have rented a server to swipe orders. The payment for these operations is made through more than 10 bank cards. More than 10 bank cards have paid millions of orders, which should be easy for Amazon to find.
Why is the volume of company billing so large? Tian Wei said frankly that this is related to the category he runs. Sexual products can't be directly advertised on Amazon, but can only be implanted through a third party. This kind of advertisement is expensive, and the effect is not good. Many sellers of the category look for breakthrough points and see that the effect of swiping is better.
To attract consumers to buy, the most basic thing is to make a data for consumers to see. Anyone who buys a thing can't just choose you among hundreds of millions of goods. They must see the evaluation of the goods, and they will follow when they see someone likes it. If you don't pay the bill, your products are difficult to attract consumers' attention, and the size of your products is relatively small. Therefore, it may be one of the most effective methods.
Many sellers who are interested in making interesting products have the behavior of brushing orders. Maybe the number of small white sellers who are just entering the industry is less, and the number of sellers who have been working longer will be more. For this category, failure to swipe may be equivalent to no life source input.Now, many businesses in this category around us are looking for another way after they can't pay the bill.
Previously, Tian Wei had always believed that there was nothing wrong with order swiping. He didn't have a deeper understanding of his cross-border business until this year, when Amazon closed its stores on a large scale, experienced a series of events, such as the closure of all accounts, the withholding of hundreds of millions of funds, and the failure to unseal in Seattle.
Sell Shenzhen3 suites for the company
The collected funds were detained, but the company still needed funds to maintain its operation. Tian WeiMore than 6 million yuan sold the last apartment in Shenzhen, as well as a car.
Tian Wei said that the company went downhill last year, and the issue of the number was the last straw.
In 2020, the COVID-19 broke out worldwide and became a booster for online shopping. Sales of household kitchens, sports equipment and other categories soared. Many cross-border sellers rely on the domestic supply chaintransportShi earned an unexpected fortune, and then his confidence in this year's business exploded, but Tian Wei did not enjoy this wave of dividends.
"The raw materials of our products are purchased from the United States and then processed. After the outbreak of the epidemic, the price of raw materials has risen sharply, once a day, which used to be about 40,000 yuan/ton. Now it has doubled, and there may not be a lot of goods, so some people hoard this raw material in large quantities."
Tian Wei said frankly that the company's success in Amazon also depends on this kind of raw materials. The raw materials in South Korea, Japan and other places are inferior to those in the United States. During the epidemic, the prices of raw materials in the United States rose sharply, and they were often out of stock. The factories were unable to produce and supply normally, which directly led to the embarrassing situation that there were orders but no goods.
High freight costs are also a negative factor,"What's the use of too many bills? The freight is too expensive, which has doubled several times, and there is no price in the cabinet." Tian Wei said. Many countries are unable to deliver goods due to logistics stagnation or interruption; In addition, the increase of European electronic product tax points also affected the company's profits.
Tian Wei roughly estimated that the company's profits last year shouldMore than 200 million yuan. However, the store operation requires working capital, and the supplier's payment for goods and loans also need to be paid. The company still has a series of expenses to pay for its normal operation, and all funds flow in the Amazon business chain, so there is not much money in hand. The snowball became bigger and bigger, and the company's input began to exceed its output.
In order to make a turnover, Tian Wei sold two houses in Shenzhen last year, totalingMore than 15 million yuan.
In terms of domestic e-commerce, Pinduoduo is attracting a large number of users. Tian Wei has closed two stores in Tmall, focusing on the former.
Although the performance declined, according to the comprehensive situation of domestic and foreign businesses, Tian Wei's company can still maintain. This year, however, a wave of titles has come."You have a straw in your heart, and Amazon is a pair of scissors. You can make a living by staying alive, but if you give you another plate, you will be completely cold." He said.
After the event, Tian Wei sold his last house in Shenzhen. So far, he isAll the three suites purchased in 2018 have been sold for more than 20 million yuan, but he has not lived in any of them.
Press the Amazon pause button to wait for the opportunity
After taking a heavy punch from Amazon, Tian Wei did not lie down. He has adjusted his status and waited for new opportunities. Wade across the water of domestic and foreign e-commerce, in his words,"Amazon can't give up".
In 2012, Tian Wei started to open a shop on Taobao, which caught up with the dividend period of the platform. At first, he worked in the living category. Later, because some businesses sold parrots banned by the state in violation of regulations, the platform was reformed. Tian Wei gave up this category and turned to sex toys. "13 years ago, an acquaintance came into contact with this industry and felt that its potential was relatively large. At that time, the first potential project product was developed by himself, which was a coordinated process from product selection to all aspects."
From Taobao to Tmall, and then to Quicksell, Tian Wei entered the cross-border e-commerce industry.In 2017, he started to work as an Amazon, and now he is an old seller.
How does cross-border e-commerce benefit compared with domestic e-commerce? He said:"Relatively speaking, the profits of all platforms in the dividend period are quite considerable. But if you compare China with Amazon, you can earn 1 cent in China and 4 cents on Amazon, which is 4 times the profits."
Tian Wei said that he didn't have much money when he started Amazon. The reason why he chose sex toys was that he had supply chain resources and had just entered a new platform. He didn't have much advantage in the early stage, so he could only choose a category that was slightly unpopular or had a little potential; For example, clothing or daily necessities and other categories cost a lot of money, and most of the products such as maternal and infant products or electronic technology also need a lot of money, or the entry threshold is high. However, the threshold of the selected category is lower, the profit is relatively high, and the potential is relatively large.
Make AmazonIn five years, after this year's title boom, many of the factories around Tian Wei who are in the same category with him are also planning for a way out. "Those who should change their careers in the future will all change their careers. Many of them are bankrupt, some go to Tiktok, some change their categories, and some go to work."
Tian Wei didn't leave, he was readyThe five accounts continue to be Amazon, and they still choose the previous category, but only a dozen are available every day, which is different from the peak period. "I can't give up. I hope there will be some after this storm."
Tian Wei, who has been an e-commerce business for many years, believes that he can seize opportunities if he attacks boldly at the tuyere. However, there is no shortage of bold people who were lacking in the past. He understood that many sellers rushed to Amazon:"If you want to be an Amazon person this year, you must be bold. Amazon is a normal outlet, and there will be more and more people coming in. When one group of people falls, another group will fill in, and there will never be a shortage. If you fail, there will be more people going forward."
In the field of cross-border e-commerce, in addition to Amazon, Tian Wei is alsoIn November, Tik Tok was started for drainage. After some users are interested in watching the video, businesses can hang out Amazon stores or personal contact information.
In order to enhance the ability to resist risks, many sellers started to stand independently. Tian Wei had no intention of doing so, because not every product is suitable. Previously, one of its independent stations in Malaysia could rise at sunriseMore than 10000, but affected by the epidemic, the local can no longer do live broadcast, and the independent station business has not continued.
However, the cross-border e-commerce business has been unable to support the company's operation. At present, Tian Wei's company mainly relies on the domestic Pinduoduo business.
For many experiences this year, this youngAfter 95, he accepted it calmly. "People have been working all the time. Over time, everyone will experience the experience and grow. It is impossible to stay in one place all the time." However, his mentality has also changed: "In the past, his mentality was to make more money when it was easy to make money when he was young, but now it is difficult to make money."
epilogue
In the first half of this year, Amazon's powerful cash ability spread all over the streets, and many people were eager to get close to this gold sucker,
One"Good wind can help me to go to Qingyun".
On April 23, an offline forum of cross-border e-commerce in Shenzhen was crowded out. Due to too many participants on the site, the situation was out of control, so the speech was forced to be suspended and the crowd evacuated. Only a week later, the booming Amazon industry suddenly changed, and the main account of the big seller Patoson was closed, and the number blocking tide began.
The seal continued for several months, triggering an industrial earthquake,3C and other categories have been reshuffled, and companies that have been designated as such have been either downsized or closed down, with constant attention and reports both inside and outside the industry. In an instant, Amazon seemed to have turned from the legendary "money boy" into a nightmare, with the capital standing still and sellers struggling to survive.
Cross border e-commerce is booming, and Amazon's thunder has shaken off the gorgeous robes of the industry, revealing the lice inside.
The fuse of the event was the manipulation of comments such as small cards, but it was more than that. Amazon responded that the blocked sellers had repeatedly and seriously abused comments, as well as other violations, such as forging identity, offering bribes (cooperating with some gray industry parties), and selling illegal products.
Amazon scraped the bone to heal the wound, and Zhongzhao Seller Company almost lost half its life. They carefully divided the remaining eggs into different baskets. Ten billion oversold Tongtuo started training. Other sellers are also diversifying risks and increasing profit points through multi platform layout, adding independent stations, and supporting potential sellers.
For the onlookers, in addition to the palpitations when the number closure tide broke out, more people agreed with the platform's cool wind action. Amazon has a strong compliance wind, and some sellers regard it asThe "suicide" label has significantly shrunk the evaluation operation in the industry. Long term sellers believe that everyone is on the same running line.
In the category of title sales, many people have been eyeing the vacated market vacancy and hope to replace it. After this vigorous rectification, as Amazon said, the sales volume of Chinese sellers has not changed, but only a middleman in the sales chain.