Chase Clymer, co-founder of Electric Eye and host of the Honest Ecommerce podcast, joined the Ten K Collective Podcast to discuss the transition from Amazon to Shopify. He recommends that if someone were to start an ecommerce brand today, they should use Amazon, even though they would need to learn a lot about the platform. He believes Amazon has a built-in audience and can help increase sales. He also recommends taking advantage of the Amazon Profit Quiz to help identify areas of waste and how to address them. Timestamps Starting an Ecommerce Brand: Shopify or Amazon? When it comes to starting an ecommerce brand, the two most popular platforms are Shopify and Amazon. Both have their own set of advantages and disadvantages, making it difficult to choose between the two. In this post, we’ll discuss the pros and cons of each platform and provide some guidance on which one might be better for your brand. Why Choose Amazon? Amazon is a massive marketplace that has a built-in audience of millions of users. This can be a huge advantage for new ecommerce brands that are looking to test their product and find product-market fit (PMF) quickly. With Amazon, you can get feedback on your product and make adjustments rapidly. Amazon’s customer data and algorithms can also help you to find new customers and increase sales. However, there are also some downsides to using Amazon. While it’s a great platform for testing and validation, it may not be the best long-term solution. Amazon takes a percentage of your sales and owns your customer data, which can limit your ability to grow your brand and increase profits. Additionally, if you’re selling a luxury product, Amazon may not be the best fit, as it tends to favor commodity products with low margins and low average order value (AOV). When to Transition from Amazon to Your Own Platform? The decision to transition from Amazon to your own platform will depend on several factors, such as your revenue, profit, and business goals. According to experts, when sales are “just happening,” and your revenue is in the thousands, it’s a sign that you’ve found PMF. However, to build a sustainable and sellable business model, you need to build your own platform.