Despite concerns raised about Amazon possibly using data from third-party sellers on its Marketplace to benefit itself at the expense of those smaller companies, new numbers from the e-tailing giant show many of the merchants on its site are doing quite well.
According to Amazon, third-party sellers set a record selling more than two billion items worldwide last year. Today, there are two million sellers on Amazon that account for over 40 percent of the total units sold on the site.
"We're seeing strong growth from sellers listing their items across our global marketplaces. In fact, there are now more than a billion offers for customers to browse from sellers who are listing items for sale outside their home country," said Peter Faricy, VP for Amazon Marketplace. "The growth of mobile and the introduction of the Amazon Seller App have also been a big win for sellers this year."
![[Image: Fulfillment by Amazon]](/public/images/discussions/18003/amazon-marketplace-still.jpg)
A growing number of third parties are turning to Amazon for fulfillment, as well. According to the company, its Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) service grew more than 65 percent year-over-year worldwide. Sellers using FBA, allow Amazon to store and ship items. The service allows them to participate in Amazon's Prime program, offer free shipping and to take advantage of its customer service.
For many consumers, Amazon has become the first site to search when looking to make a purchase, a decisive factor for many third-party sellers looking to do business on the site.
According to ChannelAdvisor (via Internet Retailer), Amazon Marketplace comp sales increased 26.9 percent for its clients during the recent holiday season. A total of 44 percent of the product volume sold by its clients in December went through FBA.