Deanna Slamans
2024 is a big year for me. It’s his 10th anniversary for his Hershey-based eco-friendly diaper business. The small business my husband and I started at our kitchen table now employs 10 people and generates more than $7 million in revenue. Our cloth diapers and plant-based diapers are popular with environmentally conscious parents.
We’ve achieved success through hard work, determination, and an incredibly positive partnership with Amazon. That’s why I’m perplexed and concerned by the Federal Trade Commission’s lawsuit, filed last fall and joined by Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry, alleging that Amazon is harming sellers like me. .
If the lawsuit is successful and Amazon is forced to change the way it operates, it will become much more difficult and expensive for small businesses like ours to operate. And for us, the next 10 years will be even more uncertain.
Amazon’s scale, reach, and cutting-edge technology are invaluable to small, professional sellers like us. For a small business like ours, getting on the shelves of supermarkets and big box stores would have been a time-consuming and expensive nightmare. But by selling online, you can quickly reach millions of potential customers at a fraction of the cost of going to a brick-and-mortar store. This means we have been able to compete with and even take market share from big players like Seventh Generation and Honest.
Eco-friendly diapers account for less than 5% of total diaper sales. Most people choose low-cost plastic diapers. We don’t have the resources to run TV ads, so we have to use advertising very wisely to reach people who might be interested in our products. Amazon ads are the most effective marketing tool and offer better cost-per-acquisition than any other advertising platform. You can also see how well your ads are performing in real time and even make changes to them thanks to the dashboard provided by Amazon.
The government’s lawsuit accuses Amazon of running “junk ads” that waste buyers’ time and sellers’ advertising dollars. That’s the opposite of what we experienced.
Finally, Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) is extremely helpful for our business. FBA helps you meet your fast shipping guarantees as a “Prime” seller and handles all the behind-the-scenes logistics and customer service for you. Shipping with FBA is much more efficient and 70% cheaper than other comparable services. The government says sellers are being “forced” to use FBA, but it’s difficult to overcome. FBA allows small businesses like us to provide world-class service to our customers. I call it a win for everyone.
Politicians seem to think that because Amazon is big, it must be bad. It’s funny, I often tell people that working at Amazon feels different than working on a big corporate machine. They provide nudges and tips to make your marketing materials and product photos more effective, and help you track sales and other key business metrics. And recently, Amazon invited me to join their Black Business Accelerator program, where I had the opportunity to discuss business strategy and development with experts.
It troubles me that policymakers don’t understand the value Amazon brings to small businesses. Of course, lower fees and cheaper advertising are welcome, but what business owner doesn’t want that? But we get unparalleled value, tools, and services for what we pay for.
People often ask me for advice because I come from a tough background. I always tell people that anyone can start a business and make it successful. But I also tell people to take advantage of the amazing technology that is readily available. I had the opportunity to attend the Milton Hershey School, founded by chocolate king Milton S. Hershey. For me, Hershey is a source of inspiration. He was an innovator who built his company using the latest technology. Now, thanks to Amazon, I and thousands of other small businesses can do just that. I hope the FTC and Attorney General Henry take the time to consider the value and opportunity Amazon provides to sellers and don’t try to blow up the system without understanding the consequences of their actions.
Deanna Slamans is co-owner of Naturally Nature in Hershey, Pennsylvania.
