Amazon started to offer free monthly storage and removals in March in their Amazon FBA New Selection programme, to make it easier for you to sell new products through FBA. Merchants seem to like the programme so Amazon have enhanced and expanded the FBA New Selection programme. They have increased the number of new ASINs that can qualify for benefits to 500 per seller, per calendar year and added limited-time free return processing in select product categories.
Professional sellers with no inventory storage limit can qualify to get the Amazon FBA New Selection programme benefits. You can check if you have a storage limit here and learn more and enrol in the FBA New Selection programme here.
Of course bearing in mind that FBA shut down to incoming shipments for a month and pushed out delivery dates for products already in FBA by a month, due to the huge quantity of essential items they were shipping, you might want to carefully consider how reliant on FBA you want to be until the pandemic is well and truly over. We’d suggest keeping some of your stock under your control in case the relaxations to the lock down result in more panic buying and logistics issues. Seller Fulfilled Prime is an option (if you can meet the strict requirements), but otherwise having stock you can ship yourself will ensure you can continue selling regardless of any FBA challenges that Amazon may face.
Amazon FBA New Selection programme benefits
Free monthly storage and free removals
Sellers enrolled in the programme can take advantage of the fee waivers on up to 500 new-to-FBA parent ASINs that they create. All eligible ASINs qualify for free monthly storage for the first 50 units sent to Amazon fulfilment centres for 90 days after the first unit is received. Remove any of those first 50 units within 180 days after the first inventory-received date with no removal fees.
Free return processing for four product categories
For Clothing & Accessories, Shoes & Bags, Jewellery and Watches, FBA will waive return processing fees for up to 50 units of each ASIN that customers return to the fulfilment centre within 120 days of the first inventory-received date.
Discount on delivery
Sellers who are new to FBA can get their first £80 in inbound transportation charges waived if they use the Amazon Partnered Carrier programme. ASINs do not have to be new to FBA to get this benefit.
Amazon FBA New Selection programme eligible ASINS
To be eligible for the New Selection programme, parent ASINs must be:
- New to FBA
- Received at the fulfilment centre after April 1, 2020
- Standard size
- In new condition and not in a Media category
To get the benefits of FBA New Selection, you must enrol in the program before sending your new ASINs to the fulfilment centre, and you must maintain eligible status. (Participants in the monthly storage and removal fee promotion ended March 31, 2020, are included automatically in the new programme.)