Almost a year and a half after its Belgian launch, Amazon can unpack some remarkable local success stories. The platform aims to convince more SMEs to take the plunge into e-commerce.
International springboard
Amazon launched its Belgian platform in October 2022. Sixteen months later, Eva Faict calls herself a humbly happy country manager: “Over the past year and a half, I have seen that the formula works, as long as we keep the focus on what Belgian customers want: a wide selection of both international and local brands, low prices every day, with great convenience, checkout with their favourite payment method, fast delivery, free for Prime members… We already have millions of customers here.”
Moreover, Amazon manages to partner with more and more Belgian entrepreneurs. “Globally, most of our sales come from sales partners. Belgian SMEs also partner with us: there are now around 1,200 of them.” Amazon is a springboard to the rest of the world for local companies. Telling is the success story of Loop Earplugs: that company gets the lion’s share of its sales in the US and is the biggest seller of earplugs on Amazon.com.
Local autonomy
“Not bad for a small Belgian company! I also think of Garzini, for example, the producer of smart wallets and card holders. Or Gimber, the famous ginger drink. These are fine illustrations of Belgian entrepreneurship. As a proud Belgian, I am happy to see that Belgian sellers can sell all over Europe, or even worldwide, via Amazon in a few clicks. If you have a good product at the right price, it can go fast. That’s really cool.”
Although the retailer operates globally, the local team still has a lot of autonomy, Faict stresses: “There is of course Amazon’s flywheel, with selection, price and convenience. But we adapt that offering to local consumer needs. A good example is ‘Brands of Belgium’, the shop-in-the-store with Belgian brands. It also applies to Prime Video: how do we make sure the language experience works for Belgian users, how can we collaborate with local production houses?”
Breaking down barriers
The offer is growing exponentially: the Belgian online shop went from 180 million products to 360 million, the Brands of Belgium platform grew from 14,000 to 38,000 references. The limits are far from in sight: “There are about 1.2 million SMEs in Belgium, and of these, about 1,200 are now on Amazon.com.be. We still have a long way to go… What we are trying to do is remove barriers. More than 50% of SMEs are looking for new growth channels, but just about a third of them make the leap to e-commerce.”
Various services support the growth of sales partners: think of automated translations to sell products smoothly in more countries, or logistics services. In addition, Amazon also offers sellers data analytics. “This involves insights about how often your products are seen or searched for, the price levels of similar products,… That helps you build your business further.”
Momentum
“I’m really focused on the customer and seller experience,” concludes Eva Faict. “If we get those right, then the results will follow. Do we have what the customer wants? Is our pricing right? Do we have fast and reliable delivery? Those are the questions I ask. Our first year shows that the formula is working. The momentum is there.”
At RetailDetail’s Omnichannel and E-Commerce Congress, on 5 March in Antwerp, Eva Faict will engage in dialogue with representatives of two of Amazon’s local sales partners: Gimber and Garzini. Speakers from Ocado, Blabloom, Hybrid, Shopopop, Vaimo and Zalando will also sign up on the day. Tickets can be ordered via the link below. Don’t wait too long: the past two editions sold out well in advance!
