For this episode of the eCom Logistics Podcast, we welcome Rick Watson, Founder and CEO of RMW Commerce Consulting, as well as the host of his own podcast called The Watson Weekly. 

Rick gives an insider's look into CommerceHub's acquisition of ChannelAdvisor and shares rich insights on Amazon's new service called Amazon Warehousing and Distribution (AWD). He digs into its ripple effect on 3PL and how this service challenges competitors like Shopify and their own sellers' entire supply chains. 

HIGHLIGHTS

• 04:00 CommerceHub acquires ChannelAdvisor 
• 09:09 AWD: Taking on 3PL and revitalizing Buy with Prime 
• 21:02 Shopify: Prioritizing brand experience and building long-term logistical infrastructure 

QUOTES

12:24 Reducing friction in FBA - Rick: "Amazon thinks in terms of kaizen, like continuous improvement, and if there's any little friction between those things, Amazon is going to try to eliminate it as long as it has the eventual goal of making sure that this item is in stock just 5% more than their competition, then Amazon wins because Amazon is caring about that 5% that they're losing through the replenishment process." 

17:17 Amazon enters markets with Prime as their leverage - Rick: "Do we want to fight UPS and Fedex at their strength? Does that make any sense? Let's go where we have some leverage. What is the biggest leverage of Amazon? Prime." 

32:19 Shopify creates a brand experience unlike Amazon - Rick: To Amazon, a brand is a vendor. The customer is the customer. And so that is really the single point of differentiation that Shopify can hang their hat on, which I think works for a large percentage of the market, especially for the big guys.  

Find out more about Rick Watson in the links below: 

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rickwatsonecommerce/
• Website: https://www.rmwcommerce.com/
• Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-watson-weekly-your-essential-ecommerce-digest/id1577388393

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