The Next Chapter…

The past two years at the University of Michigan have been a terrific learning experience, and the relationships will last a lifetime. Completing my MBA at the University of Michigan was the best decision of my career. While the MBA chapter of my life closes, a new chapter is beginning.

This week I began work at Amazon.co.UK, managing the fashion and consumables categories of the Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) business. Learn more about the FBA business here. In a nutshell – Amazon offers other merchants the ability to store their inventory in Amazon's fulfillment centers, and Amazon will pick, pack, and ship the inventory for the merchant. Amazon will also provide customer service (including processing returns) for all items that are fulfilled by Amazon. All third party merchandise that is fulfilled by Amazon is also eligible for Amazon Prime or Super Saver Shipping. Merchants are also able to use the FBA service to fulfill orders across channels (e.g. their own website, eBay, etc). Mark Mahaney put it best in a recent Bloomberg interview (see here).  Mark emphasizes how FBA increases liquidity in the Amazon marketplace by providing first party service to third party orders, which is something other marketplaces can't yet duplicate. The Mark Mahaney video is worth a watch (it's 2min).

For those that don't follow Amazon closely, FBA is one of several merchant services offered by Amazon.  Amazon has a large marketplace business not just a retail business, and often the items you are viewing on Amazon might be sold by a third party. Below is a screenshot of what FBA looks like from a consumer's standpoint.

I am extremely excited to join the FBA team in the UK. Not just because of my passion for the marketplace business, but also because I am anxious to learn more about the UK market and culture. Expect upcoming blog posts about the UK e-commerce market…it is a fascinating market. As for my blog, I expect to become more active and it will continue to represent my opinions and interest.