Amazon News – July 2022 –

  Amazon continues launching new features and here are some of the most notorious ones announced in the past weeks. 1.- Amazon launches virtual try-on for shoes This launch follows the opening of its first fashion store in May, called Amazon Style, which is in Glendale, California. The store allows customers to scan QR codes to find size and color information through the Amazon Shopping app and send items to a fitting room. The feature is currently available to iOS users in the U.S. and Canada and is already offered on sneakers from brands such as Puma, Reebok, Adidas and New Balance. It is planned to add more brands and expand the feature to Android users. To use the feature, simply select the “Virtual Try-On” button that appears below the sneaker images. According to Muge Erdirik Dogan – President of Amazon Fashion – “Amazon Fashion’s goal is to create innovative experiences that make online fashion shopping easier and more enjoyable for customers. We’re thrilled to introduce Virtual Try-On for Shoes, so customers can virtually try on thousands of styles from the brands they know and love at their convenience, wherever they are.”

  We’ll have to wait to see when they offer us the functionality in Europe. 2.- Amazon launches “Luxury Stores” in Europe. Launched in the USA on September 15, 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic, coinciding with the start of the New York Fashion Week celebrations, and from the hand of none other than the iconic American fashion house Oscar de la Renta, Amazon’s “Luxury Store” was shown as the ideal refuge for fashion brands and luxury accessories, within the always busy marketplace of the online shopping giant. After the good reception, on June 8 they launched to conquer the European market, specifically in Germany, United Kingdom, France, Italy and Spain. Amazon describes this new service reserved for luxury brands as an exclusive area within its marketplace that combines, on the one hand, the trust and convenience that all its customers usually find on Amazon, providing them with access to options such as fast and free services, while on the other hand it is about offering a “first class shopping experience”, giving them access to a careful selection of luxury fashion brands. “We are delighted to be able to offer our European customers even more choice, with the launch of Luxury Stores on Amazon. On ‘Luxury Stores’ we will be able to find an inspiring range of outfits for any occasion, from established designers such as Elie Saab, to emerging brands such as Mira Mikati,” explains Ruth Diaz vice president of Amazon Fashion Europe. “With ‘Luxury Stores on Amazon’, brands can present their collections in an authentic way, thus inspiring our customers and inviting them to be able to define luxury for themselves,” notes Xavier Flamand, vice president of Amazon Seller Services. “Amazon is providing brands and designers with innovative resources, such as animated graphics and interactive and customizable multimedia options, with which they can tell their stories even better, and appeal in a more compelling way to a fashion-engaged audience.” 3.- New markets for Amazon. E-commerce giant Amazon plans to expand into five new countries: Belgium, Chile, Colombia, Nigeria and South Africa. According to Business Insider, the launch in the Belgian market will take place in September of this year, and carries, internally, the symbolic name of “Red Devil”, in honor of the country’s national soccer team. Belgian residents have had to shop on Amazon through two marketplaces. Dutch-speaking Belgian consumers usually order from the Dutch web shop amazon.nl, while French speakers order from Amazon France. This has not prevented the Seattle-based retail giant from gaining considerable market share: in Brussels and Wallonia, one of every five parcels delivered by Bpost comes from Amazon. Although Amazon has not confirmed the news, the launch is the next logical step. However, there is still one practical hurdle: the amazon.be web address is in the hands of Amazon Insurance, an insurance broker. It remains to be seen how the Americans will resolve it. 4.- Launch of Amazon Marketing Stream (BETA). Amazon Marketing Stream (beta), is a product that delivers metrics and information from Amazon Ads campaigns to advertisers’ or integrators’ AWS accounts via a near real-time insertion model. Amazon Marketing Stream can help brands optimize campaigns more effectively, respond quickly to campaign changes and increase operational efficiency. This new launch is currently only available in the U.S., Canada and Mexico and can be used by agencies, tool providers and direct advertisers as well as suppliers and vendors. It is accessed through the Amazon Ads API.