This post is by Leah McHugh, an ecommerce consultant for ecommerceChris.com.
Amazon began restricting or “gating” brands on a large scale in 2016. Out of the blue, anyone who wanted to sell well-known brands such as Adidas, Levi’s or MAC Cosmetics, would have to go through an approval process.
The new requirements to sell a restricted brand on Amazon could include official invoices, a letter of authorization from the brand owner and, most controversially, a non-refundable “approval fee” of thousands of dollars.
Here are the answers to some of the most important questions on brand gating that sellers are asking today.
View Top Amazon Seller ToolsWhat is Amazon brand gating?
Brand gating is when Amazon requires that third-party sellers go through an approval process prior to being allowed to sell a specific brand, or sometimes a specific product within a brand.
What are Amazon restricted brands?
Restricted brands and brand gating are the same thing. If a brand is restricted, sellers will be blocked from selling it on Amazon until they have successfully passed an approval process.
When did Amazon start restricting brands and why?
Amazon started restricting brands in a major way in 2016. As with most things Amazon, they didn’t give a straight answer as to WHY they decided to start doing this. But it’s pretty clear that it was to do with counterfeiting and product quality issues on the marketplace.
Rather than waiting for buyers to make inauthentic item complaints, and having to dedicate countless investigator hours, gating brands allows Amazon to enforce supply chain requirements before there are issues. They are combating inauthentic complaints by addressing the problem upfront.
How much is the fee to sell a gated brand?
When brand gating was introduced on a large scale in 2016, Amazon required sellers to submit an “application fee” to apply for brand approval.
This could range from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars and was – unsurprisingly – very unpopular with sellers. It would require a large sales volume to make the fee economical, and as it was non-refundable sellers would be even more out of pocket if their application was rejected.
The good news is that we haven’t seen Amazon request an application fee for brand approval in a while. Amazon is treading more carefully when it comes to seller relations, and charging a fee to sell certain brands could look like it’s controlling competition.
Which brands are gated on Amazon? Is there a list?
There isn’t an official list of brands currently restricted by Amazon.
You can usually find unofficial lists of restricted brands on ungating services websites. These should be taken with a grain of salt, however, as they are simply compiled from sellers’ feedback about brands they have attempted to sell.
Watch out for brands that are included on lists but not actually gated. This can happen because sellers have offered the brand on Amazon, without needing approval, but then received IP infringement notices or cease and desist letters from the brand.
The most accurate way to tell if a brand is gated is to use Amazon’s “add a product” tool in Seller Central. This will tell you if there are listing limitations on that particular ASIN.
Which categories have the most restricted brands?
It’s difficult to know which categories have the most gated brands, as there isn’t an official list.
Amazon tends to prioritize brands with high levels of counterfeit activity and products where safety is a concern. So, you’ll likely find more gating in high-end brands, consumables, baby products and electronics.
How do you get approval to sell a gated brand on Amazon?
Again, it depends. Some gated products aren’t open to new applications at all.
Those that are, usually require one or both of:
- Original and verifiable invoices
- A letter of authorization from the brand owner
This isn’t a popular point of view, but my opinion is that Amazon sellers probably shouldn’t be selling anything on Amazon without verifiable invoices and authorization from the brand owner.
Not only are these needed for gated brands, but we’re also seeing Amazon asking for these earlier and more often to head off inauthentic complaints, IP infringement notices and product quality issues.
Ask the brand owner for a letter of authorization on their company letterhead.
It’s a good idea to provide them with a template to make it easier, and ensure they provide all the information Amazon needs. This is a good example:
Authorization to Sell Brand on Amazon
The seller identified below is authorized to sell [BRAND] products on Amazon.
[POSSIBLE LIST OF SPECIFIC PRODUCTS OR ASINS]
SELLER NAME: [Name of seller as it appears in seller account]
SELLER STORE NAME: [Amazon store name requesting authorization]
SELLER EMAIL: [Email of seller as registered with Amazon]
SELLER PHONE NUMBER: [Phone number of seller as registered]
SELLER ADDRESS: [Physical address of seller as registered]BRAND NAME(S): [Brand name]
BRAND OWNER: [Company name]
BRAND OWNER EMAIL: [Email of brand owner]
BRAND OWNER PHONE NUMBER: [Phone number of company]
BRAND OWNER ADDRESS: [Physical address of company]BRAND OWNER CONTACT:
[Name of contact person]
[Title of contact person]
[Email of contact person]
[Phone number of contact person]BRAND OWNER SIGNATURE: ___________________________
Credit: papyrophilia, via the Amazon seller forums.
DATE: ______________________
Do I need to change my sourcing practices to sell gated brands?
That depends on how you’re sourcing. The safest sourcing model for Amazon is one that is as close to the brand as possible. So, if you’re the brand owner, then you don’t need to worry about getting authorization to sell your brand.
