Summer is in full bloom and we think that our news this month will be as exciting as your summer plans! 🙂 With coronavirus restrictions easing out, June is definitely an eventful month.
As always, we’d love to know what is happening on your side of the Globe and what other topics you’d like us to cover in our newsletter. So our inbox is open to any feedback or updates you may have.
Jewelry eCommerce News 📰
eBay looking into new advertising opportunities for sellers
Up until now, eBay has been generating most of its revenue from seller fees. In order to add value to their users and further monetize their site, the platform is planning to introduce 3 new advertising models (Promoted Listings for Auctions, CPC Ads, and an Offsite ad program). These models have proven themselves to be most effective on other marketplaces (f.i. Amazon, Etsy), and will be launched as pilot initiatives this quarter to test their feasibility and success.
Etsy is continuing to expand and grow, adding more space for jewelers
Etsy, an online selling platform whose catalog is about 25% comprised of jewelry items, recently released its financial report which highlighted a drastic increase in its revenue (141%) and consolidated GMS (132%), both of which were higher than last year. This growth comes after they expanded their team, optimized search options, included more features in their ranking model, and focused on executing an aggressive marketing plan.
Walmart presents the latest summer shopping trends, including Father’s Day
Walmart is offering more visibility for marketplace sellers. Four hot summer trends for 2021 have been identified in key merchandising areas. One of them is Father’s Day/graduation gifts, which is important to keep in mind as jewelry (particularly men’s jewelry) has always been a popular gift category.
Amazon has now opened its doors to sellers from around 100 countries
Amazon has expanded its list of sellers to 85 more countries, opening the market to Central Asia, Africa, South America and the Middle East. This longly anticipated move comes one month after Walmart announced a similar expansion. The move stands as a great example of how competition can improve the macro situation for online sellers.
Amazon Prime Day 2021 – save the date
Amazon has confirmed that Prime Day will be happening this month, on June 21st and 22nd. The event offers large discounts to Prime members across all categories and most of their international platforms The event is one of the most important in the industry; the 2020 event drove about $3.5B sales. Amazon has also reiterated their focus on promoting small businesses during this event, where most jewelery business belongs to…
Dive into the details and make the best of it!
eBay explains new consumer spending habits
eBay released their ReOpen Report highlighting a strong market demand for fashion shopping. As life returns, consumers are moving towards an interest in personal style related to socializing and returning to the office. With their “Let’s get luxe” slogan at the forefront of the report, jewelry is definitely in the focus. This shift is primarily led by Gen Z shoppers and is expected to last throughout the summer.
USPS shipping price increases will likely affect online sellers
USPS has requested approval from the Postal Regulatory Commission in the US to increase their prices in order to make up for a decline in mail volume. Enjoying exclusive legal rights over shipping Market Dominant products like letters, postcards and marketing mail, they are looking 6.8% increase in mailing prices in that category. If approved, this may have a serious impact on small businesses and marketplace sellers. Make sure to follow the changes!
Trends in the eCommerce Technology
Ecommerce sellers, particularly those in the fashion industry, will soon accelerate their sales with the new advances in augmented reality (AR) and virtual/3D solutions allowing customers to “try-on” their products online. Multiple companies, like Walmart and Adidas, have already implemented these technological innovations into their customers’ online shopping experiences.
BTW, since jewelry is a visual product, we at Valigara have also adopted this new trend by partnering up with one of the leading AR solutions providers and giving our clients the ability to display how their jewelry looks on the buyer.
News from Valigara 👀
Our team has been busier than bees last month and this month. And we have lots to show for it!
Firstly, we added a new dropshipping program to our online management platform, a comprehensive tool used to launch and grow your jewelry dropshipping business. If you are not familiar with dropshipping, it is a business model that helps a business owner sell without keeping his/her own inventory. All products would be on stock with a third party and shipped directly to the consumer. Valigara’s online management platform now includes new features meant to support this business model, such as order forwarding and tracking. Learn more here.
We also entered a new partnership with the AR/VR leader Inova to allow for an immersive shopping experience through our platform. By using their AR solution, Valigara clients can now provide their customers with the ability to virtually “try on” jewelry items prior to purchasing them.
Last but definitely not least, we popped up on TheMarker, one of the most influential daily business newspapers! Get a sneak peek behind our founder’s story and see what else we have in store for the future here.
Igor’s Tip of the Month: Don't wait to be perfect for eCommerce
“While the right setup is important, you cannot “prepare” yourself for eCommerce.
Selling online is not just about “knowing”; it’s a lot about “doing” – creating workflows that work for you. This can be reached only through trials and errors. What jewelry sells well online, how to price it, how to sell and send it – there are thousands of well-known and frequently discussed topics. Still, being able to access this information won’t help w/o applying the knowledge through your own team’s skills, processes, and hands.
Consider your first year online as “practical learning.” Only by jumping into the water, will you find out what works for your business online”.
