Here’s How Some Brands Are Fighting Back Against Amazon

From groceries and household supplies to electronics and clothing, Amazon has steadily been expanding its product categories in an effort to appeal to as many customers as it can. But some brands don’t want the e-commerce giant horning in on their business, so they’re fighting back.

The Wall Street Journal notes that several companies are instead turning to local retailers to get their products out: Some are enforcing minimum advertised prices to battle undercutting from online sellers, while others may give local stores priority on new products.

Here are a few examples of how some brands are pushing back against the spread of Amazon:

1. Luxottica

The eyewear company — which has several brands under its umbrella, as well as LensCrafters — launched a new program requiring minimum advertised prices for its Ray-Ban and Oakley sunglasses. It doesn’t set the actual sales price, however.

As a result, the average discount on Ray-Ban sunglasses on Amazon has decreed to about 3%, the company says. Luxottica has also shut down several thousand Amazon accounts that didn’t comply with their new policy.

2. UPPAbaby

By offering free stroller tuneups to customers at local retailers, UPPAbaby is hoping to bring in not only customers who have purchased their products, but also folks who may not have heard of the brand at all.

Stores can host tuneup clinics, where UPPAbaby customers make an appointment and bring in their strollers for a checkup. These events also give the company important feedback about what kinds of issues customers may be having with their strollers, like if they’re having trouble with a harness.

UPPAbaby also gives local retailers first pick when it’s launching a new model — even up to a six-month head start in some cases.

“We never launch a new product with Amazon,” UPPAbaby vice president of sales Joanne Apothéloz, told WSJ.

3. Brooks

This running gear company is working on a new app that connects to a treadmill via an iPad in an effort to help local stores figure out which shoe is best for a customer, depending on how they run.

The company is helping some retailers cover the $960 cost of the system, the vice president of sales told the WSJ.

Brooks is also allowing stores to order products online that they don’t have in stock, and drop-ship them directly to customers’ homes. This way, the brand is hoping to stymy show rooming — in which a customer might get the right fit at a store but then buy the shoes online instead.

For more on how brands are pushing back against Amazon, check out the WSJ’s story.

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist