In this episode, James Thomson, former Business Head at Amazon Services, provides critical insights into navigating the complexities of selling on Amazon. He shares strategies for brand growth, avoiding common pitfalls, and understanding Amazon's ecosystem to maximize success for ecommerce businesses.
James Thomson is the Managing Partner of Equity Value Advisors, advising brand executives and investors that are seeking guidance on how to accelerate ecommerce revenues, and to align ecommerce and physical retail distribution and pricing strategies. Formerly, James was the Chief Strategy Officer at Buy Box Experts, a managed services agency supporting brand executive teams selling online, as well as private equity investors evaluating brands sold on Amazon. He also served as the business head of Amazon Services, the division of Amazon responsible for recruiting tens of thousands of sellers annually to the Amazon marketplace. He also served as the first Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) account manager. Prior to Amazon, James was a management consultant and retail banker. In 2015, James co-founded the PROSPER Show, a continuing education conference for large Amazon sellers, and in 2017 co-authored the book “The Amazon Marketplace Dilemma”, designed for brand executives seeking to optimize their Amazon marketplace distribution strategy. In 2020, he co-authored the book “Controlling Your Brand in the Age of Amazon”, designed for brand executives struggling to handle critical channel management issues caused by pressures from the Amazon marketplace. He holds a Bachelor of Science from University of Alberta, an MBA from Vanderbilt University (Owen School), and a Ph.D. in Marketing (B2B Pricing & Distribution) from Northwestern University (Kellogg School). James has guest-lectured at more than a dozen business schools around the world, including Stanford University, Northwestern University, University of Michigan, University of Notre Dame, Cornell University, and Dartmouth University. James has been featured over 400 times in Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Wired, Forbes, The Washington Post, Consumer Reports, Entrepreneur, Inc., CNBC, Bloomberg, Internet Retailer, Globe and Mail, CBC, and many more. He has also done television interviews on CNBC, PBS Front