Dive Brief:
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Amazon is pow-wowing with 10 major retailers, including J. Crew, Abercrombie & Fitch, Ralph Lauren, Lord & Taylor, and Neiman Marcus, to feature their products as soon as this summer, sources told the Wall Street Journal.
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Unlike smaller retailers that sell directly through Amazon's marketplace, shoppers would be led from Amazon.com to the retailers’ sites.
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Orders would be eligible for free shipping for Prime members, although the retailers would provide fulfillment.
Dive Insight:
The proposal, which Amazon will not comment on, would change things up both for the retailers and for Amazon. The deal would link retailers with the online company that has always been seen as competition. For Amazon, it could mine what it always craves — personal data from its shoppers — as well as a handy extra for its Prime members who may pay more soon. But it could also take those shoppers away from its site, directing them to the retailers’ own. Tough to call winners/loser here, except possibly Prime members looking at the rumored rate hike.