How to use Amazon to distribute your export products in your target country

Amazon, as the world’s largest e-commerce platform, is a great way to start or grow a business as an exporter. Although not impossible, it has been a notoriously lengthy process to begin selling on Amazon from Africa in the past. However, now that the South African court has given Amazon go-ahead to begin construction on their new African headquarters in Cape Town, it is expected that with Amazon’s expansion into Africa the process of selling on Amazon from Africa will be simplified. Their expansion into South Africa is expected for February 2023. 

For SMMEs, selling on Amazon can be an extremely successful method of e-commerce in general, and more so to reach global markets. More than half of units sold on Amazon are from independent sellers, and a large percentage of these are from foreign markets. Although registering as a supplier for some of the global markets on Amazon can involve hoops to jump through, those South Africans that have successfully become registered Amazon Sellers have reaped substantial returns. 

Selling on Amazon can be supported through the use of Amazon’s e-commerce fulfillment structure Fulfillment-by-Amazon (FBA). With FBA, sellers send their products directly to Amazon’s warehouses, where inventory is stored. When orders come through, Amazon ships the product to the customer, as well as handling all customer support and returns. 

If you’re set up as a seller on Amazon, all you need to do is set up FBA on your seller account to start using their services. Then, when adding products to your Amazon catalog, specify them as FBA inventory. When your products are ready to be sold, you would have to securely transport your goods to an Amazon fulfillment center as per their packing and shipping guidelines. Many people ship their goods directly from the manufacturer to FBA warehouses, so stock never needs to be stored in the seller’s own warehouse. 

Before Amazon can receive your inventory, your products must be prepped, which includes having FNSKUs (a unique barcode used on Amazon) and other proper labeling.

Once goods arrive at the fulfillment center, they become available for purchase. When an order is made, Amazon’s employees pick, pack and ship the goods on behalf of the sellers.