“Transmeri is a Finnish family-owned company with a long tradition of creating successful product launches and major market positions. Selling on the Amazon marketplace can be challenging, and you must be prepared for competition and country-specific requirements when you start selling," says Transmer's Anne Hakala.
Transmeri’s history began in 1928 and your products have been familiar to Finns for years. How hard was it to start such a different project on the Amazon marketplace in Germany?
– The fierce competition and standing out from the competitors were most thought provoking. Our brands which are well known in Finland are completely unknown to German consumers.
Amazon has high demands for sellers – How did Transmeri face challenges?
– At times, there was already disbelief due to the increasingly changing demands and documentary from Amazon. With patience and in cooperation with Retime we coped well. At the end of the project, Retime’s Tabea helped us a lot.
If I remember right you were supposed to open the Amazon UK marketplace, what made you change direction and start from Germany?
– The approach of Brexit and the uncertainty it has caused. Fortunately, it was easy to switch to the German marketplace within the account.
One of your products is the Jalo Oxford Mattress. Do you plan to expand your product range in Germany?
– The intention is to moderately import new products into the Amazon in Germany. Little by little, while learning what sells.
When companies start selling through Amazon, expectations can be really high at the beginning. How did your sales start running and is the project a quick test or a longer journey for you?
– We are still in the early stages of sales. We see this project as a learning process at this stage and we want to develop operations in the long term. We hope that over the years, Amazon could become one major sales channel. We absolutely see this as a longer path, where you learn all the time along the way.
If you could name one single point in a project, what was the hardest part?
– There have been more challenges along the way than expected. One big challenge has been the constant transformation of Amazon and the new requirements for sellers, including the list of required documents seemed endless at some point.
What was the easiest in the whole project?
– The fact that we were accompanied by a skilled partner, Retime, who handled practical matters related to Amazon and who understands Amazon’s operations.
What advice do you have for companies considering starting sales on Amazon?
– You should carefully explore the potential of the products in the Amazon. If you don’t have experience with Amazon, then without a knowledgeable partner I wouldn’t recommend starting sales on Amazon.
Amazon allows brand owners to make a Brand Store where you can build your own online store for all products. Do you think that Amazon offers enough brand content possibilities?
– Yes, at least what we have published is sufficient. You can add images and logos that represent the brand as you want. Of course, for example the use of videos, gifs and 3D images in the future would be a good development.
