Overview

Making the leap from Amazon’s first-party (1P) vendor model to a third-party (3P) seller model is a pivotal strategic decision for many brands. In Amazon’s 1P arrangement (Vendor Central), you sell your products wholesale to Amazon (becoming a “vendor”) and Amazon handles the retail pricing and customer sales. In the 3P arrangement (Seller Central), you sell directly to consumers on Amazon’s marketplace, gaining more control but also taking on more responsibilities. This transition isn’t just a simple flip of a switch—it’s a significant change that can impact pricing control, distribution, product launches, and overall profitability.

Every brand’s situation is unique. Some are drawn to 3P for the control and agility it offers, while others prefer the simplicity and scale of 1P. According to recent industry data, third-party sellers now account for the majority of Amazon’s sales volume, reflecting a growing trend of brands embracing the marketplace model. Yet, the decision to switch from 1P to 3P should not be taken lightly—there are tangible benefits, potential pitfalls, and long-term implications to consider. In this article, we’ll explore why a brand might move from 1P to 3P, how to execute the transition smoothly, and what outcomes to expect in the months that follow. We’ll also discuss when not to switch, and how to evaluate if a hybrid model or staying with 1P makes more sense.

Whether you’re an Amazon agency professional guiding clients or a brand evaluating your Amazon strategy, this guide will provide a comprehensive roadmap for navigating a 1P-to-3P transition. Let’s dive into the strategic why’s and how’s of making this move—and how to come out on top.

Why Brands Consider Switching from 1P to 3P

Regaining Control Over Pricing and Brand Experience: The number one reason brands cite for transitioning to a 3P seller model is to gain more control over their presence on Amazon. In the 1P vendor setup, Amazon acts as the retailer and often dictates the retail price of your products. Brands frequently struggle with Amazon’s price matching and discounting algorithms that can undercut pricing (for example, if other retailers or unauthorised sellers list lower prices, Amazon may drop the 1P price to match).

This can erode brand value and disrupt pricing across other channels. By moving to 3P, you as the brand can set and maintain your own prices, allowing for consistent MSRP enforcement and healthier margins. Ruben Alikhanyan notes that lack of pricing control is the biggest motivator he sees for brands making the switch. In a 3P model, you’re the seller of record, so you won’t wake up to find Amazon unexpectedly sold your product at a 20% discount — you are in the driver’s seat on pricing.

Improved Product Launches and Marketing Agility: Another major reason to consider the switch is the flexibility a 3P account provides for marketing and launching new products. Under the 1P model, when you introduce a new SKU, you must wait for Amazon to place a purchase order and stock that item. Amazon’s order algorithms depend on sales velocity signals that new products lack, so Amazon might not order enough (or any) of your new launch, making it hard to get momentum. This can derail carefully planned product launches.

As a 3P seller, by contrast, you can proactively manage product launches: listing new items immediately, controlling inventory levels via FBA (Fulfilled by Amazon), setting up promotions, deals, or Amazon Vine for reviews, and running advertising from day one. You essentially have full control of the go-to-market strategy on Amazon, similar to how you would on your own D2C site. Ruben pointed out that many larger brands will even use a hybrid approach – launching new products as a 3P seller to build up demand and reviews, and then later transitioning those products to 1P once they’ve proven themselves. This highlights how much easier it is to generate traffic and buyer interest for new items as a seller. In short, 3P selling can be far more conducive to aggressive growth tactics and product introductions.

Direct Customer Relationship and Brand Store Opportunities: In a 3P model, brands also gain a slightly closer relationship with the end customer. You have access to buyer messages, can respond to reviews, and you get to shape the brand experience on Amazon via enhanced content, Brand Registry, and even the ability to create a Storefront and follow-up marketing (within Amazon’s communication guidelines). While Amazon still guards customer data closely, being a seller allows you to at least see who is buying and engage customers through the Buyer-Seller Messaging system or programs like Amazon Subscribe & Save, etc., which is not possible as a vendor. This can be valuable for brand-building on the platform.

Margin and Profitability Considerations: Every brand’s cost structure is different, but many suspect that 3P could be more profitable. When Amazon buys from you as a vendor, they purchase at wholesale – often 50-60% of retail price – and then they bear fulfillment, customer service, and returns costs. In a 3P scenario, you capture the full retail price from the customer, but you also pay Amazon a referral fee (~15% in most categories), FBA fees if you use FBA, and other costs like storage and returns processing, plus you handle the inventory risk.

The trade-off is that you might achieve higher net margins per unit if your pricing and costs are managed well, because you’re not selling at a big wholesale discount. Additionally, brands on Vendor Central often incur chargebacks and co-op fees (e.g. marketing co-op, damage allowances, payment term discounts like 2% 30-day), which can quietly eat into your true revenue. By switching to 3P, those vendor-specific fees disappear, replaced by more straightforward seller fees.

For many manufacturers with healthy margins, this can indeed translate to higher profitability on each sale. We’ll discuss later how to evaluate this carefully—because if you don’t have margin to spare or efficient logistics, 3P could also reduce profitability for some. The key is that 3P puts profit control in your hands: you price the product and manage the costs, so savvy sellers can optimise for better margins rather than accepting Amazon’s terms.

Strategic Independence and Multichannel Consistency: Beyond Amazon, some brands simply prefer not to have one distributor (Amazon Retail) control a huge chunk of their business. By being a 3P seller, you remain a retailer of your own products, which can simplify channel strategy. You can harmonise pricing across Amazon and other direct channels, run unified promotions, and avoid conflicts with Amazon Retail’s policies (such as not being allowed to sell direct on Amazon if you’re a vendor in some cases). It gives brands the feeling of greater autonomy in how they operate on the platform, essentially treating Amazon as another direct sales channel rather than an unpredictable wholesale customer.

When Not to Switch: Scenarios Where 1P Still Makes Sense

Despite the allure of control and flexibility, moving to a 3P model isn’t the right choice for every brand. There are situations where sticking with 1P (or at least postponing a transition) may be wiser:

• Poor Distribution Control or MAP Enforcement: If your brand does not have tight control over distribution, going 3P could lead to chaos. Ruben warns that brands with leaky distribution often see unauthorised third-party sellers already selling their products on Amazon. These grey-market sellers might be buying from distributors or regional wholesalers and reselling on Amazon at lower prices, undercutting your official listings. In a 1P setup, while this is still problematic, Amazon Retail might share the Buy Box with those sellers or even suppress your listing if the price discrepancy is large.  
  
  But if you switch to 3P and you don’t clean up distribution, you could find yourself competing for the Buy Box against a swarm of unauthorised sellers who undercut your price — effectively losing the very control you sought. Before transitioning, a brand should ideally enforce Minimum Advertised Price (MAP) policies and clean up channel leaks so that when you start selling 3P, you are the dominant seller on your listings. If you cannot achieve this (for example, if you rely on an open distribution model), then staying with 1P might be better, since Amazon Retail at least will compete aggressively on price and keep the buy box, even if at lower margins. In short, if you can’t control who sells your product, shifting to 3P could backfire by pitting you against a host of competitors on your own ASINs.
  
  
• Not Being the Manufacturer (Thin Margins): Brands that aren’t the manufacturer of their products or that operate on very thin margins should pause before switching. As mentioned, 3P selling comes with Amazon fees and logistics costs that you will shoulder. If you’re a distributor or reseller whose margin was, say, 20% selling wholesale to Amazon, you might find that selling 3P (paying ~15% referral fee, FBA fees, shipping, etc.) leaves you with no profit. Ruben noted that understanding your cost of goods and having control over it is crucial. 
  
  Manufacturers usually have the best margins and can better absorb Amazon fees in a 3P model. But if you’re essentially a middleman, 1P’s wholesale model might be more viable since Amazon’s purchase orders give you a predictable (if lower) margin without you handling fulfillment. Additionally, Amazon Retail sometimes provides other incentives to vendors (like co-op funds for marketing, guaranteed purchase volumes, etc.) that a small reseller might need in order to thrive. Bottom line: if you can’t sustain Amazon’s fees or lack direct product sourcing at good costs, sticking with 1P could be safer.
  
  
• Operational Limitations – Logistics & Fulfillment: In a 1P relationship, Amazon handles all the customer fulfillment, returns, and customer service. Some brands prefer this “hands-off” approach because they don’t have to run an e-commerce fulfillment operation. Switching to 3P means you’ll need to either use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) or your own warehouses to ship every single order, and manage inventory levels so you don’t stock out. If a brand doesn’t have the operational capacity to keep products in stock and shipped on time (whether via FBA or FBM), then a 1P model might serve them better. 
  
  Consistency and supply chain reliability are critical in 3P. For instance, if you chronically run out of stock as a seller, you’ll lose sales and ranking; whereas as a vendor, Amazon might order and stock deeper (assuming you can supply POs). Before transitioning, ensure you have the logistics infrastructure (or a 3PL partner) to handle the warehousing, prep, and shipping that Amazon was doing on your behalf in the 1P model. If not, you might face customer service issues and costly mistakes on 3P.
  
  
• Brands Happy with Amazon’s Retail Partnership: It’s worth noting that many brands flourish under the 1P model and have no compelling reason to change. Amazon Retail can drive huge volume for a brand – they will purchase in bulk and often boost exposure of the product through programs like Amazon Vine, Subscribe & Save, or special promotions. Some brands enjoy a collaborative relationship with Amazon Vendor Managers, even negotiating terms and getting marketing support. 
  
  If Amazon is meeting your sales and profit goals as a vendor, and you’re not suffering from pricing or stock issues, then the old adage applies: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Ruben acknowledged that 1P can work well for many large brands, and in some cases, he’s advised companies not to switch if the conditions weren’t favourable. Indeed, 1P remains an important part of Amazon’s ecosystem and is even growing in certain markets – it’s not universally “obsolete” by any means. Brands should carefully evaluate the pros and cons (weighing all the factors we’ve discussed) before deciding to transition to 3P. It’s not a one-size-fits-all answer.
  
  

Planning a Successful 1P-to-3P Transition Strategy

So you’ve decided that gaining control and going 3P is right for your brand – how do you actually execute the change smoothly? A well-planned transition is critical to avoid disruptions in sales and to stay on good terms with Amazon. Here are the key steps and best practices for migrating from Vendor Central to Seller Central:

1. Open Lines of Communication with Amazon: If you have an assigned vendor manager or category contact at Amazon, it’s wise to inform them of your intentions in advance. Amazon is a huge organisation, so you won’t exactly get “permission” or possibly even a response, but giving a heads-up is considered good business etiquette. In some cases, your vendor manager might help coordinate a smooth wind-down of 1P operations. 
   
   There is sometimes a fear that Amazon will react negatively (e.g. retaliate by halting orders early), but Ruben dispels this in his experience – if handled professionally, Amazon typically respects the decision and moves on. The key is to maintain a professional tone: you can frame it as restructuring your distribution strategy or running out a test, rather than an abrupt “break-up.” In any event, avoid simply ghosting Amazon or failing to fulfill POs without explanation. Communication sets the stage for a graceful exit.
   
   
2. Gradually Wind Down Vendor Central Fulfillment: Don’t flip the switch overnight. A recommended approach is a gradual discontinuation of SKUs on Vendor Central. This means you might start by making certain products unavailable to Amazon (you can do this by setting them to “non-replenishable” or “discontinued” in Vendor Central so Amazon stops ordering them). Perhaps begin with a few less critical SKUs or those where you have 3P stock ready. 
   
   Over a period (which could be a few weeks or couple of months), phase out the assortment Amazon Retail can order from you. This way, Amazon will naturally taper down its purchase orders. Eventually, you’ll set all your items as unavailable for vendor orders. This staged approach helps prevent a scenario where Amazon suddenly has a big out-of-stock on your brand. It also buys you time to ramp up your Seller Central operations in parallel. Importantly, monitor Amazon’s inventory levels during this wind-down – you want to avoid stockouts on the retail side before your seller offers are established, as that could lead to lost sales momentum.
   
   
3. Launch on Seller Central in Parallel: You don’t have to wait until 1P is fully shut off to start 3P selling. In fact, there may be a period where both models run concurrently (often called a hybrid model). Many brands enroll in Brand Registry and set up their Seller Central account while still fulfilling some 1P orders. As you discontinue a SKU on Vendor Central, you can immediately create a Seller Central listing for it (linking to the existing ASIN so you carry over reviews). 
   
   If you use Fulfilled by Amazon, send in inventory to FBA in advance, so that as soon as Amazon’s own stock runs out, your FBA offer is there to win the Buy Box. This overlap ensures a seamless experience for the consumer — they can still find and buy your product, not even noticing that the seller has changed from Amazon to you. Be cautious during this phase: Amazon’s systems sometimes flag if the same entity is selling the same product via 3P that Amazon also retails, as it can be against terms for a vendor to compete with Amazon on an ASIN. 
   
   Ruben mentioned accounts being shut down when two models conflicted. To mitigate risk, some brands choose to wait for Amazon’s stock to sell out or for the vendor relationship to be formally terminated before aggressively ramping up the 3P offer. Others coordinate with their vendor manager so Amazon knows not to order more. In any case, plan the timing carefully and watch for any Amazon policy notifications. A hybrid period can be effective but requires careful management.
   
   
4. Close Out Financial Accounts and Agreements: One easily overlooked step is settling all the financial loose ends of your Vendor Central account before exiting. Ensure you’ve accounted for accounts payable and receivable: have you been paid for all shipped POs? Have all chargebacks or co-op deductions been resolved? Likewise, if you owe Amazon for any invoice (e.g. return reimbursements or marketing accruals), settle it. 
   
   Ruben shared a cautionary tale where an unpaid balance and a closed vendor account led to a long struggle to get Amazon’s accounting team to reconcile and pay out. It’s much easier to sort these out while your vendor account is still active. Download all relevant reports and documentation of vendor transactions (in case you need to chase payments later). Once you are confident everything is concluded, you can request Amazon to close the Vendor Central account. Some brands keep the vendor account dormant (with 0 items) for a while just in case, but Amazon may eventually close inactive vendor accounts anyway. The goal is to exit on a clean note with no outstanding disputes.
   
   
5. Optimise Your Seller Central Setup: As you transition, invest time in fully optimising your 3P presence. This means updating content (titles, bullets, images) for SEO and conversion, setting up Amazon PPC campaigns, and leveraging tools like Amazon Brand Analytics now available to you as a seller. Remember, as a new 3P seller, you might not have the same organic search momentum your products enjoyed when Amazon retailed them. To avoid a dip in sales, be prepared to boost visibility through sponsored ads and possibly promotions. 
   
   Ruben emphasised the importance of ramping up advertising immediately once you’re selling on 3P. The good news: that ad spend is an investment in your own growth (and Amazon certainly won’t mind the extra advertising revenue, which may ingratiate your seller account after leaving 1P). Also, ensure you have inventory positioned in FBA across all relevant Amazon fulfillment centres to maintain Prime shipping eligibility nationwide, matching the fast delivery customers expect. Essentially, treat Day 1 of your 3P operation like a new product launch – pull all the levers (ads, deals, social media, etc.) to generate sales momentum so the Amazon algorithm picks up that your offer is winning and active.
   
   
6. Monitor for Any Transition Issues: During and after the switch, keep a close eye on a few things. Watch your ASINs’ Buy Box status – are your offers active and capturing it? If Amazon had remaining stock, it could cause buy box suppression or price conflicts, so monitor pricing alerts. Also, check for any listing hijacks or new unauthorised sellers that might try to take advantage of the change (sometimes when Amazon goes out of stock, more third parties might jump in). 
   
   Make use of Brand Registry’s tools to report infringing sellers if needed. Keep an eye on your seller performance metrics as well; any hiccups in fulfillment or customer service early on can hurt your account health. You want a pristine track record out of the gate. If you encounter problems (like Amazon unexpectedly continues to order a SKU you meant to discontinue, or if you get an alert about being both a vendor and seller), reach out to Amazon’s support for guidance. Many brands successfully navigate the change, but vigilance is key in the first few months of transition.

Life After the Switch: What to Expect in the First 6–12 Months

So you’ve completed the transition and are now fully operating as a 3P seller – what does the post-transition period look like, and how do you ensure it’s a success? The six to twelve months after switching are critical for cementing your brand’s performance under the new model. Here are some outcomes and tips based on real-world experiences:

Initial Sales Fluctuations (Short-Term Impact): Don’t be surprised if you see some short-term dip in sales velocity during the switchover. Even with careful planning, the change in who is selling the product can affect the Amazon search algorithm and buy box dynamics. Some brands have observed that when they shift from Amazon Retail to third-party, they temporarily lose some organic search positioning or sales rank – possibly because Amazon’s system “resets” certain metrics when a product goes from being Prime-sold-by-Amazon to Prime-sold-by-Merchant.

Ruben hinted at hearing that organic traffic might decline initially when making the switch (anecdotal). This makes it all the more important to be proactive with advertising and promotions immediately after the switch. The goal is to maintain sales momentum so Amazon’s A9 algorithm continues to favour your listings. If you planned well (e.g., had FBA stock ready and campaigns live), the disruption can be minimal and short-lived. It’s wise to explain this to stakeholders: a small blip might occur, but it’s a part of the process. Monitor your daily and weekly sales closely and adjust your tactics as needed (increase ad bids, run a limited-time deal, etc., to spike volume). With the right approach, many brands find they can recover and even surpass their old sales levels as a 3P seller within a few months.

Hands-On Management and New Responsibilities: In the 3P world, you are now the operator – which means tasks that Amazon handled must be managed by your team or agency. Inventory management becomes a top priority: you’ll need to plan FBA replenishments according to lead times and avoid stockouts, while also not overstocking (to minimise storage fees). Sales forecasting and demand planning skill sets come into play.

Customer service is another area: as a seller, you’re responsible for customer messages, returns inquiries, and keeping your order defect rate low. This is a new workflow if you came from 1P, where Amazon handled buyer support. Make sure you have resources in place to respond to customer messages within 24 hours, process returns, and monitor your seller account health metrics (late shipment rate, valid tracking rate, etc.). Advertising management will be ongoing – unlike 1P where Amazon may have run some ads for your products, now it’s entirely on you (or your agency) to run Amazon PPC and optimise it.

This is actually an opportunity to drive more sales than Amazon might have on its own. Overall, expect that your team will be more hands-on daily with Amazon than before. Many brands find this investment worthwhile, as it means direct control, but it’s a cultural and operational shift. It can help to use marketplace management tools (for example, the MerchantSpring platform offers unified dashboards for multi-account monitoring) to stay on top of all the moving parts.

Measuring Success Against Original Goals: It’s important to define what success looks like post-transition, ideally tied to the reasons you made the switch. Revisit the key drivers: Was it pricing control? New product sales? Margin improvement? Six months down the line, measure those KPIs. For instance, if pricing control was the goal, assess how well you’ve maintained your desired price points on Amazon since going 3P.

Are competitors undercutting you less now? Is your brand’s price image improved? If product launch agility was a goal, look at your most recent product introduction on 3P – did it achieve better review velocity and sales ramp than previous launches under 1P? If profitability was a goal, compare the unit economics: perhaps as a vendor, you sold an item to Amazon for $10, and now you sell it to consumers for $20 with $5 total fees, netting $15 – a clear improvement in gross margin.

On the flip side, account for new costs like fulfillment overhead or increased ad spend. It might take a few cycles to get an apples-to-apples comparison, but track the trend. Ruben suggests success will “largely depend on the first step – why you made the transition” and measuring against that purpose. For example, one of his case studies involved a well-known sunglass brand that successfully increased sales after switching to 3P because they could control their catalogue (phasing out old models and pushing new ones) and drive marketing – their metric of success was the growth of the new product sales, which they achieved. Make sure to document these wins; they validate the move and provide learnings for further optimisation.

Higher Sales and Profit Potential (Long-Term): In the longer term (12+ months out), many brands that transition to 3P do see significant uplift in sales and/or profitability. Freed from Amazon’s constraints, you can expand your catalogue more freely, adjust pricing with market demand, and potentially introduce new product lines or bundles that Amazon Vendor Central might not have accepted. Also, being 3P means you can expand to other marketplaces or regions using the same Seller Central infrastructure – for instance, easily launch into Canada, Europe or other Amazon global markets, which in Vendor Central would require separate vendor relationships or might not be offered to you. This can accelerate your overall Amazon revenue beyond what 1P alone might have achieved.

As a 3P seller, you also keep building customer lifetime value for your brand – you can remarket to your Amazon customers (via Amazon’s tools like Customer Engagement or simply by them following your Store). These are benefits that accrue over time. If part of your goal was also channel diversification, by now, you might have also established direct D2C channels where you use your success on Amazon as a springboard. Essentially, a year after switching, a brand often finds itself more agile, data-informed, and customer-centric in its Amazon approach. The financial outcome tends to be positive if the strategy was sound: often higher net margins per sale and healthy sales growth, especially if you invested in brand building on Amazon (something that’s more rewarding to do as a seller than as a vendor).

Continuous Challenges to Monitor: It’s not all rainbows, of course. Even long-term 3P sellers face ongoing challenges. Competition on Amazon remains fierce – you must defend your listings from hijackers and constantly optimise to stay ahead. Amazon’s policies and algorithms change, so staying educated (through forums, Amazon news, or partnering with experienced agencies) is important.

Inventory management can become complex if you scale up with many SKUs or marketplaces – stockouts or excess stock can hurt finances, so employing tools or supply chain expertise is key. Additionally, Amazon Retail could approach you again – ironically, if you do extremely well as a 3P seller, Amazon might invite you back as a vendor for certain products. This happened to some brands as Amazon sees the volume you do and thinks, “we’d like to retail that item ourselves.”

At that point, you’ll have to strategically decide whether to stay the course or consider a hybrid strategy (some brands do run hybrid indefinitely, selling some products 1P and others 3P to balance benefits). There’s no one right answer, but having gone through a full 3P transition, you’re now in a position of strength to choose the model that best fits each part of your business.

The Hybrid Option: Should You Run 1P and 3P Concurrently?

A common question that arises is whether a brand can or should do both 1P and 3P at the same time (a “hybrid” selling strategy). The answer is yes, it’s possible – and in some cases, beneficial – but it requires careful navigation to avoid conflicts. As mentioned earlier, one scenario for hybrid use is new product launches: a brand might sell all its established products via Vendor Central (enjoying Amazon’s massive wholesale orders) but launch each new product on Seller Central initially to generate demand.

Once the product has traction (say after 6-12 months of strong 3P sales), the brand might transition that ASIN to Amazon 1P if Amazon offers favourable terms, thereby offloading the fulfillment burden and leveraging Amazon’s retail muscle for a now-popular item. This can be a best-of-both-worlds approach. Ruben gave an example of using 3P specifically to launch products to meet a company’s broader launch plan, then handing it off to 1P when Amazon’s algorithms finally recognise the demand.

However, running a hybrid can be tricky. Amazon generally prefers one or the other for a given ASIN to avoid channel conflict. If Amazon is actively retailing a product (1P) and sees you also selling it (3P), it might suppress one of the offers or, worse, interpret it as a violation of your vendor terms (vendors sometimes have clauses not to compete on Amazon). There have been reports of vendor accounts warning brands who also list as sellers, and vice versa. The safe way to do hybrid is often by segmentation: for instance, keep certain product lines exclusive to 3P (perhaps your D2C-only line or bundles Amazon doesn’t carry) and others exclusive to 1P. Or use 3P for international marketplaces and 1P for domestic.

If you do mix on the same marketplace, coordinate with Amazon if possible, and ensure your seller account details are distinct from your vendor entity (some even use separate corporate entities). The bottom line is that hybrid strategies are advanced and should be undertaken only if you have a clear business case for it and the operational capacity to manage two parallel channels. Many agencies help brands with hybrid models, but they will agree it’s a balancing act.

For many brands, it might be simpler to choose one path (1P or 3P) at a time. Given that 3P sellers now represent roughly two-thirds of Amazon marketplace sales, the momentum is certainly on the side of third-party selling as the future. But Amazon 1P isn’t disappearing and still plays a role, especially for certain categories and large manufacturers. Your strategy might evolve over time – and that’s okay.

Conclusion: Weighing the 1P vs 3P Decision for Your Brand

Transitioning from a vendor to a seller on Amazon is a significant move that can unlock major benefits: pricing authority, channel control, marketing flexibility, and potentially better margins. It empowers brands to take the reins of their Amazon destiny. But it also comes with greater responsibility and requires careful preparation. The decision ultimately comes down to your brand’s specific circumstances – your distribution integrity, margin structure, operational prowess, and growth ambitions.

As we’ve discussed, if you’re facing challenges like price erosion and hampered product launches on 1P, and you have the capability to run a direct-to-consumer operation, a 3P transition could be a game-changer. On the other hand, if Amazon Retail is a reliable, hassle-free revenue source for you and you’re not equipped to replace that infrastructure, you may choose to stick with the status quo.

Many brands find that a thoughtful evaluation of pros and cons – perhaps with an Amazon strategy consultant or agency – is the best first step. Analyse the numbers: model out your P&L as a 3P seller versus as a 1P vendor. Factor in fees, advertising, and headcount costs. Consider running a pilot test with a small subset of products to gauge the impact. And keep an eye on Amazon’s own policies and market trends; they can shift, making one model more attractive than the other at times.

In 2023-2025, Amazon has invested in Vendor Central improvements (like new data API access), suggesting it still values vendors. Meanwhile, it continues to roll out tools for 3P brand owners (Brand Registry enhancements, Brand Analytics, etc.), empowering sellers further. This dynamic environment means agility is key – be ready to adapt your Amazon channel strategy as needed.

In the end, the brands that thrive on Amazon are those that stay informed and proactive. If you do move to 3P, immerse yourself in the world of Amazon seller best practices, or partner with experts who can manage it. The reward can be not only improved performance but also a sense of ownership and clarity. As Ruben Alikhanyan conveyed, having the right tools and support is crucial in this journey:

“Let me start by saying how much I love MerchantSpring… I’ve been through so many tools to manage Amazon to the point I almost paid a developer to build one. Thank God I found MerchantSpring – I couldn’t be happier. I want everyone to know how great MerchantSpring is.”
— Ruben Alikhanyan, Founder & CEO of PAS Agency 

Ready to take control of your Amazon destiny? Watch the full webinar with Ruben and James for deeper insights and firsthand tips on the 1P to 3P transition. If you’re considering making the switch or want to maximise your marketplace performance, reach out to us at MerchantSpring. We specialise in helping agencies and brands succeed on Amazon – whether you’re managing multiple 3P accounts or juggling hybrid 1P/3P models. Contact us or book a demo of MerchantSpring to see how our platform can provide the analytics and reporting you need in this new era of marketplace management. Don’t let your Amazon strategy happen by accident – take the wheel and drive your brand forward.