Website Closers® presents a thriving eCommerce business that designs and sells proprietary wall posters. Management aims to identify design themes that can reach a large audience and that fit within the company’s existing product categories—primarily inspirational or school-focused posters.
The process of creating new products includes:
- Reviewing existing best-selling posters on Amazon and asking how something better can be designed
- Reviewing search term volume via Amazon’s tools and creating posters for highvolume search terms
- Seeking inspiration from other selling platforms, such as Etsy, and creating something new to sell on Amazon
The business has printers in the US and China. Best-selling posters are printed in bulk in China, which significantly lowers the cost of goods. For posters with lower sales, a printer in the US is used. Using a US printer allows the brand to quickly bring a new product to market and test it on Amazon without placing a bulk order. Posters are packed in rigid mailers purchased from US vendors and then sent to Amazon facilities.
The business has a secondary printer in China for smaller purchase orders. The core reason is to have a backup supplier to avoid being affected by supply chain issues in the event they arise.
All SKUs are sold Prime apart from the times of the year when Amazon imposes inventory limits, and the company ships some items from a local warehouse.
Inventory orders are placed two to three times annually with Chinese suppliers. Payment terms are a 30% deposit and the remaining 70% upon completion of goods. There is a 30-day production time and a 60-day shipping time to Amazon’s warehouses (FBA). The printers in China send photos of finished goods and cartons before the final payment is sent and shipping is scheduled for Amazon. Occasionally management hires a 3rd party inspection service in China to visit the factory and review goods before they are shipped. Orders with US printers are placed as needed, which is highly variable.
Around 70% of all stock is housed at Amazon FBA warehouses. The remaining 30% is stored at a domestic warehouse and used for reserve inventory and shipping to Canadian FBA warehouses when necessary. The owner aims to keep three to six months of inventory in stock for customer orders.
Demographics are highly varied, and the posters reach a broad audience. A combination of Sponsored Ads and listing optimization drives traffic to product listings. No offAmazon marketing efforts are used.
The owner has grown this business, working only four to seven hours weekly while managing three other Amazon brands. His primary tasks include:
- Reviewing inventory levels at FBA warehouses and determining if stock from the local warehouse is needed at FBA
- Forecasting demand for the upcoming seasons and determining PO amounts and timing
- Creating and optimizing ad campaigns
- Coordinating with suppliers in China for POs in progress
- Working with design talent to bring new poster designs to life
- Creating and optimizing ad campaigns
- Coordinating with suppliers in China for POs in progress
- Working with design talent to bring new poster designs to life.
No employees are required, and no contractors are used, demonstrating the highly efficient and systemized nature of operations. This brand has been set up to be straightforward to operate.
A variety of scale opportunities are available to the already successful business. Adding new designs and finding future best-sellers is low-hanging fruit and can quickly and easily be tested with the US printer before being produced in bulk.
Canvas print options could also be tested which would increase avg selling prices and appeal to a wider demographic. Expanding this across all SKUs and introducing multiple sizing options is worth considering.
Further researching high-volume search phrases, enhancing PPC advertising, and optimizing listings would undoubtedly boost the top and bottom lines with minimal effort. A buyer without Amazon expertise could comfortably outsource these tasks to any of the excellent agencies available to increase sales and minimize their workload.
Expanding to new categories and themes is uncomplicated and would introduce the brand to a new audience.
Given the success in the US and Canada, international expansion is an enticing prospect. Classrooms, schools, and learning centers are a consistent, worldwide, and enormous market. Not only are English classes taught widely in non-English speaking countries, but the posters could be translated to garner additional market share.
Finally, expanding to additional sales channels, such as Etsy, Walmart, and a Shopify-built website, would allow the brand to enjoy multiple revenue streams, reach millions more prospective customers, and begin marketing efforts off-Amazon.
A buyer requires few special skills to begin running and growing this welloiled machine. Understanding how Amazon works and possessing design skills would be beneficial but can easily be outsourced. The existing owner is highly motivated to assist in a seamless transition and ensure continued success and growth.
