Amazon has unveiled a major change to its third-party logistics services, which will now enable an expanded group of merchants to store, pack, and ship their products using the company’s fulfillment network.
On Thursday, during the annual Amazon Accelerate conference in Seattle, the e-commerce giant announced that it will be expanding its Multi-Channel Fulfillment (MCF) service to support sellers from Shein, Shopify and Walmart.
As a result, merchants will no longer have to establish separate packing-and-shipping channels, and will be able to “simplify their fulfillment, increase sales through existing channels, and quickly launch in new online stores.”
Newsweek has contacted Amazon by email for further comment.
Why It Matters
Independent merchants selling through Amazon collectively move over five billion items annually, accounting for more than 60 percent of the company’s retail sales and generating $156.1 billion in services-related revenue in 2024.
Amazon said this integration will allow sellers on these platforms to utilize Amazon’s logistics network for order fulfillment, streamline their operations and inventory management, and benefit from the company’s “quick, reliable, and transparent delivery.”
What To Know
Originally launched in 2013, MCF enables Amazon’s logistics network to fulfill orders from sales channels outside of Amazon, letting merchants leverage its storing, shipping and customer service infrastructure.
“This eliminates the time and cost investment associated with establishing separate fulfillment operations, giving merchants large and small a powerful advantage to grow their businesses,” Amazon said in its latest announcement.
Gene J. Puskar/AP Photo
According to Dharmesh Mehta, Vice President of Worldwide Selling Partner Services, the expansion of MCF to Shein, Shopify and Walmart “helps brands reach customers wherever they shop—while relying on Amazon’s fulfillment network to deliver for them.”
Amazon previously extended MCF services to sellers on channels including eBay, Etsy, Temu, and TikTok Shop, and highlighted the success of this expansion in the latest announcement. The company said merchants using MCF have reported an average 19 percent boost to sales, alongside reductions in out-of-stock-rates and a 12 percent improvement in inventory turnover.
What People Are Saying
Dharmesh Mehta, Amazon’s Vice President of Worldwide Selling Partner Services, wrote in a blog post: “With MCF, Amazon manages the operations for all of a seller’s sales channels, including picking, packing, and delivering. This means that all of the orders a seller receives can now benefit from the speed, reliability, and simplicity of Amazon’s fulfillment—with MCF fulfilling millions more orders quickly and reliably year-over-year.”
Retail Analyst Neil Saunders told ModernRetail: “The appeal of Amazon and Shein is actually very different. Yes, this may help Shein to some degree, but it doesn’t necessarily replace Amazon. Shein is going to be there anyway, so it’s better for Amazon if they’re in the room. They get a piece of that pie.”
What Happens Next?
Merchants on Shopify and Walmart Marketplace can now utilize Amazon MCF to deliver their orders. Amazon said that the service will expand to the Shein U.S. Marketplace by the end of the year.
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