By Arianna McLymore, Greg Bensinger
NEW YORK (Sazua.com) – Amazon’s Prime Day is becoming less appealing for a key segment: sellers.
Several independent sellers who formerly offered products made in China for Amazon’s major July sales event are choosing not to participate this year or are cutting back on the quantity of discounted items they will present.
The intended retreat, not previously disclosed, serves as a strategy for vendors to safeguard their profit margins due to the U.S.-China trade conflict sparked by significant tariffs imposed on Chinese products by U.S. President Donald Trump. This information comes from four traders and six advisors who together counsel thousands of Amazon sellers.
Included among these sellers is Steve Green, who offers $230 bikes and $60 skateboards sourced from China through Amazon’s platform. This year, Green mentioned he will be sitting out Prime Day for the first time since 2020.
He’s withholding inventory that was imported prior to when President Trump’s tariffs went into effect on April 9, with plans to sell it later at the original price. The current tariffs from China amounting to 145% would nearly triple his expenses for new imports, rendering them “unaffordable,” as per his statement.
Likewise, Kim Vaccarella, CEO of the China-produced tote bag firm Bogg Bag, chose not to participate in Prime Day this year. Her aim was to keep back part of her unsold stock in the United States, planning instead to offer these items at full price or with minor markdowns through retailers like Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, Dick’s Sporting Goods, and various small independent stores. Meanwhile, she has stopped producing bags made in China—Bogg Bags typically retailing between $70 and $200 on Amazon—as she shifts production to facilities in Cambodia and Vietnam.
Prime Day has generally been among Amazon’s most significant annual shopping occasions, ranking just below Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Although joining isn’t mandatory, Amazon invests heavily in advertising Prime Day through TV spots and social media promotions, emphasizing to vendors that showcasing their products before a broader customer base can be advantageous. The company boasts approximately 200 million Prime members globally.
Arun Sundaram, an analyst at CFRA Research, noted that Amazon finds itself in an uncomfortable situation leading up to Prime Day due to tariffs imposed on products from sellers.
Sundaram mentioned that Amazon itself will manage just fine, however, he expressed sympathy for certain independent vendors—these are the entities that stand to suffer significantly under these conditions.
A representative from Amazon mentioned they are experiencing a “robust reaction from sellers for Prime Day 2025.”
According to a seller consultant, the deadline for opting into Prime Day participation is May 23rd. If third-party vendors reduce their involvement, this could lead to lower fees and decreased advertising income for Amazon.
Amazon, along with a smaller assortment of reduced-price products. Previous iterations of this event have led to substantial sales and an increase in Prime memberships, priced at $14.99 per month or $139 yearly.
Rick Sliter, CEO of the pillow company MedCine, which markets therapeutic pillows priced at $250 each manufactured in China and Vietnam, indicated that he would probably refrain from providing discounts this Prime Day. Despite the significant boost—sevenfold over an average day—that the previous year’s event provided in terms of sales, he remains hesitant about adopting a similar approach now.
Prime Day last year was an easy decision,” stated Sliter. “However, if tariffs persist, offering discounts will become impossible.
Sundaram mentioned that Prime Day typically squeezes merchant profits due to extensive discounts compared to typical days. Consultants report that the usual Amazon seller gains approximately 15% to 20% from each sale post deducting both the cost of products and Amazon’s charges.
Amazon charges a 15% commission per unit sold without factoring in additional costs like advertising and promotional discounts during events such as Prime Day. For example, sellers must pay Amazon $1,000 for their product to be featured as a “Best Deal” with extra savings highlighted or $500 for it to appear as a “Lightning Deal.”
Adam Wilkens, who consults around 30 Amazon sellers, mentioned that several of his clients “aren’t able to consider Prime Day just yet as they haven’t finalised their tariff pricing adjustments.”
Last year, U.S. customers shelled out $14.2 billion during Prime Day, marking an 11% increase over the prior year, as reported by research company Adobe Analytics. Amazon hasn’t officially revealed when Prime Day will take place, however they have mentioned it will span four days in July.
Green mentioned that he incurred between $200 to $500 in Amazon fees and offered $3,000 to $5,000 in discounts during last year’s Prime Day, however, he considers this summer’s sales event too precarious.
Not every item sold on Amazon originates from external vendors; the company also maintains direct “first party” partnerships with certain manufacturers like Hasbro for toys. In these cases, Amazon purchases goods at bulk rates and manages much of the sales process independently. A significant portion of this stock is likewise produced in China.
CEO Andy Jassy stated in a CNBC interview on April 10th that they are making “forward-looking strategic purchases” and restructuring agreements to maintain affordable pricing for customers despite Chinese tariffs. He also mentioned his expectation that vendors would increase their prices due to these higher costs.
According to consultants who collaborate with Amazon suppliers, the company has started polling some of its biggest vendors and third-party sellers about how tariffs are affecting their operations as they prepare for Prime Day.
In the final quarter of 2024, third-party vendors made up approximately 62% of unit sales, as reported by e-commerce analysis company Marketplace Pulse.
Various vendors are testing price hikes, reducing their ad spend, or slowly bringing in goods to mitigate the significant financial effects of tariffs rather than withdrawing from Prime Day altogether.
Michael Slate typically dedicates the spring season to ready his homeware business, KitchenEdge, for Prime Day, which marks one of his peak sales periods annually. However, things are different this time around.
“With the uncertainty, I can’t offer a 20% discount when I don’t know what my product cost is going to be in the future,” he said.
Almost all of my clients are stepping away from Prime Day offers,” stated Jon Elder, an advisor with 100 Amazon vendors among his clientele. “It’s quite challenging at the moment. Many tough choices are having to be made.
(Reported by Arriana McLymore from Los Angeles and Greg Bensinger from Seattle. Edited by Vanessa O’Connell and Michael Learmouth.)
