​​Read online​​

Dear Readers,

The three things on my mind this week:?

1. I find Amazon and its AI future fascinating. Did Andy Jassy say anything new in the note sent to Amazon staff this week? We are entering an era where technology companies will have fewer staff due to the rise of AI. Amazon is unique in that it will need staff for its warehouses, but let's not get carried away with this being something like Bezos' shareholder letter. Really? No Brittain.
2. Did something happen at JD.com this past week? I ask, as we learned about the five missing years and the sudden interest in food delivery in China (hello, Meituan), as well as the sudden interest in international markets. Why now? I do not get it. Feels desperate almost.
3. Can we please remember FedEx founder Fred Smith as a great entrepreneur rather than an incumbent who failed to foresee the disruption from Amazon? May he rest in peace.

Thank you to those who reply to emails from me. I have learned a great deal by reading and engaging in conversations with readers. If you feel this is helpful, please feel free to share this newsletter.

​Onwards, Hendrik

Marketplaces

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Beyond Take Rate: Frameworks for Marketplace Pricing + Growth.

Around The World in Marketplaces

Africa

Chinese sellers fuel 60% growth on Africa’s Jumia. ‘Amazon of Africa’ Jumia fights to rebuild investor trust ($). After raising $38M, African e-commerce startup Sabi lays off 20%, pivots to traceable exports.

China

​Foreign E-Commerce Platforms Pitch Themselves to Chinese Merchants. China's JD.com looks to the international market for growth. JD.com founder: We will help 1000 Chinese brands go overseas.Shopping Made Even Easier Through RedNote x Taobao x Tmall Partnership. China’s 2025 618 Shopping Festival: Simplified discounts and new incentives from Tmall, JD.com, Douyin, and PDD. JD.com revamps store rating system. Pinduoduo joins China’s instant retail war. Meituan’s food delivery market dominance in China remains stable at 70%, report says. Kolmar, Tmall team up for K-beauty push in China. 2025 "618" Promotion Report: GMV Reaches 855.6 billion RMB. Chinese exporters increasingly need to build brands to survive. The Chinese trendy toy Labubu sold out immediately during the 618 livestreaming event on AliExpress...

Europe

​Otto is allowed to keep traders away from his marketplace [in German]. The European Commission accepts commitments offered by AliExpress under the Digital Services Act and takes further action against illegal products. ‘Rules for large marketplaces are too strict’.​

​Trendyol strengthens its electronics offering with evomag listing, Temu reportedly sets up Türkiye office with one-day delivery promise. BigBuy Partners with Kaazar Capital to Fuel European E-commerce Expansion. About You lowers barriers to its marketplace. Recommerce Group acquires Switzerland-based Verkaufen. Amazon is under investigation in the UK over an alleged failure to pay suppliers on time. Refurbed achieved annual sales of 61M Euros in 2023 [in German]. Allegro enhances its lowest price guarantee program.

​Wildberries and Russ have signed an agreement with the Eurasian Development Bank on the development of e-commerce and logistics infrastructure in the Eurasian region.

India

​Flipkart Achieves India’s Longest ‘100 Hours Beauty Live Stream’; Redefines Online Shopping with 100K+ Viewers, 140+ Brands and Endless Discovery. Matter Of Minutes: Can Flipkart Strike A Fiscal Balance Ahead Of IPO? Amazon to invest $233M to strengthen India operations network. From shilajit to skincare, Amazon India aims for $80 billion in e-commerce exports by 2030.

​Raids On Zepto, Blinkit: The Ugly Side Of Dark Stores. Meesho gets NCLT approval for its reverse flip from US. Udaan to acquire rival ShopKirana. How Zepto Is Monetising User Data Beyond Its Platform Through The Trade Desk.

Latin America

​Brazilian Postal Service (Cerios) already has a date for the launch of its marketplace [in Portuguese].

Middle East

​JD.com takes on rival Meituan in Saudi Arabia with launch of express delivery service. Meituan’s Keeta will expand into the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait, says founder Wang Xing.

South East Asia and Australia

Indonesia's antitrust agency gives 'conditional' go-ahead for TikTok's Tokopedia takeover.Toco was a ghost town. Then Tokopedia’s sellers showed up. TikTok to launch shopping feature in Japan, taking on Amazon, Rakuten. Is anyone willing to acquire Homeplus as its value drops? CJ Logistics Forms 'Alliance' with TikTok Shop to Support K-Brands. Korea's KCC investigates Coupang for alleged user rights violations in ads. Temu web traffic spikes after Catch exits Australian market. Doorzo Expands Global Reach Through Strategic Partnerships with Mercari, Rakuma, and Rakuten Ichiba.

US

Amazon announces its longest Prime Day is coming in July. Muamau Brings a Fresh, Affordable Shopping Experience to U.S. Consumers. TikTok Shop debuts live price match as it readies for summer deals. Authentic Brands Group Taps Amazon Exec to Head Marketplace Effort. Walmart Is Happy to Fulfill Your Amazon, eBay, Temu, and Shein Orders. Amazon’s New Stolen-Goods Policy Sparks Seller Discussion. Canopy Management Expands to TikTok Shop. Aterian Expands Omnichannel Reach with Product Launches on Temu. Cymbio Partners with SAP..

One big Thought

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The Jassification of Amazon

Andy Jassy is driving efficiency within Amazon, which should be facing the innovator's dilemma; yet, Amazon's culture, technology, and people (or the lack thereof) will ensure its future.

Luxury Commerce

Farfetch unveils Enhanced Advertising service for Luxury Brand Partners. - Farfetch​

FARFETCH announced the strategic launch of its enhanced advertising service for marketplace partners. Is it fair to say that Farfetch is now starting to focus on driving revenues through technology rather than entering some new business?

Luxury Counterfeiters Keep Outsmarting the Makers of $10,000 Handbags. Bloomberg ($)

The story of how Vestaire Collective and other secondary marketplaces authenticate items to provide buyers with peace of mind when purchasing luxury handbags. Luxury houses must justify their stratospheric prices with unassailable quality and desirable heritage, or watch as the once-clear distinction between authentic and counterfeit becomes irrelevant to a generation that values accessibility over exclusivity.

​LuisaViaRoma, THEBS.com and Camera Buyer Italia launch Italy’s first luxury marketplace. DutyFreeZone.com Launches Global Luxury Marketplace for Both B2B and B2C Customers. eBay and Vestiaire Collective Want an Exemption from Trump’s Tariffs. Luxury faces a slowdown amid economic headwinds and market disruptions, while industry resilience and strong fundamentals underpin its future prospects.

​Dôen Raises Series A Funding Led by Silas Capital. Net-a-Porter Appoints Heather Kaminetsky as New CEO. Why the Luxury Experience Needs an AI Moment​: Wayfair‘s Perigold Luxury Online Retail Brand Opens First Physical Store. Db Announces Footballer Erling Haaland and Billionaire Model Gustav Magnar Witzøe as its Latest Partners.

Fashion e-commerce

Beautycounter Would Like To Reintroduce Itself. - Business of Fashion​

Back under the ownership of founder Gregg Renfrew, the beauty label will relaunch on June 25 as Counter, retaining its clean formulations and abandoning its MLM-style compensation model in favor of “community commerce.”

​Renow raises €1.8M to disrupt Europe’s second-hand market with AI-powered recommerce platform. Shakira's haircare brand Isima raises $12M. A Chat with Jennifer Cohen Solal, CEO and Co-Founder ​of Private Sales Platform Hushday: Nike Delays Launch of Skims Brand.

​Reliance’s e-commerce party is ending. And Ajio is the last to go home. Is Nykaa Fashion Running Out Of Vogue? German fashion brands are now on Shein [in German]. Asos under fire after shutting customer accounts over returns rule. Amazon, Alibaba, TikTok up ante to woo Korean beauty brands. Pinterest works with e.l.f. Cosmetics to launch curated boards with new makeup tool.

Uncovering the Global Sneaker Counterfeit Trade: Inside the World of Fake Footwear. Shein’s Emissions Rise 23% by End of 2024, Despite Sustainability Claims. Shein accused of avoiding UK taxes in High Court case.

Advertising

​Supermetrics Acquires Relay42 to Create Unified Platform for Marketing Activation. Button secures strategic undisclosed growth Investment from PSG. Tracksuit raises $25M Series B, to scale global brand tracking ambitions.

​Amazon Ads and Roku Announce New Partnership.View. Click. Buy. PayPal Storefront Ads Expand Merchant Reach Across the Web. Google Ads stops auto-opting search campaigns into Display Network. Amazon Advertisers Can Now Measure How Livestreamed Broadcasts Drive Sales.

​Instacart and Pinterest to Launch New Retail Media Collaboration. YouTube is streamlining hiring creators for brands with open call.. We’re bringing Google’s Commerce Media suite to brands and retailers. Pinterest tests AI to curate collages for advertisers.​

Logistics is sponsored by Third Person - a new way for brands to discover 3PLs

The $10 billion delivery empire built on Shein and TikTok orders. - Rest of World​

The story of J&T Express and its growth in South East Asia and the competition it faces from Shopee, which has it own in-house logistics service. I continue to believe that J&T Express has global ambitions and will play a significant role in the logistics story over the next decade.

FedEx founder Fred Smith has passed away at the age of 80.

​Barrett Distribution Centers has partnered with Two Boxes. Warp raises $10M to fund fully automated robotic cross-dock facility. Sojo Industries Secures $40M in Funding to Expand Robotic Packaging Solutions Rukam Sitara and Flipkart Ventures Back Xportel.Logidoo Expands Casablanca–Dakar Route to Belgium. State-owned company coming after couriers and deliveries in South Africa.

​Swisslog to equip Chalhoub Group’s Riyadh logistics facility with advanced automation. JD Logistics launches first Middle East hub in Riyadh.

​CCI Clears Delhivery’s Acquisition Of Ecom Express Stake. Myntra expands quick fashion delivery service ‘M-Now’ to Delhi-NCR and Mumbai

​Cainiao Opens New Overseas Warehouse in Canada to Accelerate Global Supply Chain Expansion. Shipsy to Drive Rapid Expansion in Australia​

Consumer

AI digital humans outperform real hosts in China’s evolving live commerce market. - Chosun Biz English​

On Sunday, the 15th, at 5 p.m. (local time), a live broadcast featuring Luo Yonghao, a famous entrepreneur and one of China’s most renowned hosts, took place on the live streaming platform of Baidu. He introduced 133 products in 6 hours while showcasing his unique humor. He completed the broadcast perfectly without sweating from the hot lights, drinking water due to thirst, or making verbal mistakes.

The Future of Search: A Retail & Consumer Goods Perspective. - LinkedIn​

Search is evolving rapidly for retailers and consumer goods brands. No longer just a list of links, search is becoming an AI-powered conversation that blends context, interaction, and commerce. As more consumers engage with conversational AI to find direct answers or solutions, there is a shift changing how people discover products, make decisions, and buy.

​Mealogic raises $16M. Tiendanube acquires VICI and launches Nuvem Chat. Desertcart delivered 1 million items in 2025, marking a 70% year-over-year growth. Inside Mondelēz’s data-driven approach to omnichannel agility. Liquid Death Seeks Fresh Cash to Ramp Up Production. Retail sales fell in May as pre-tariff spending fizzled out.

Knuspr started with advertising revenues of 1% of sales [In German]. Knuspr aims to grow from €215M to €548M by 2027 [In German].

Payments

Powering the future of e-commerce: Introducing Coinbase Payments. JD.com founder bets on stablecoins to cut cross-border e-commerce transaction costs. Egyptian fintech Octane raises $5.2M to expand its fleet payments platform across MENA. Razorpay Picks Up Majority Stake In POP With $30M Infusion

Stats and Other Interesting News

China's online exports surge past $278.59 bn in 2024. Dutch online product spending rises 8%. Fast fashion clothes from Zara, Shein rot in Chilean desert. NRF APAC 2025: Data Is Redefining Retail.

The content here is for informational purposes only and should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice. It does NOT constitute an offer or solicitation to purchase any investment or a recommendation to buy or sell a security. The content is not directed to any investor or potential investor and may not be used to evaluate or make any investment.

This was edition number 317, sent on 22 June 2025.