Amazon's best sellers will be auctioned! The number of its brands exceeds 80

Amazon's best sellers will be auctioned! The number of its brands exceeds 80

Amazon aggregators are facing a reshuffle.

According to foreign media reports, BlackRock has launched an auction process for Amazon aggregator Seller X after it stopped repaying a loan. According to reports, the auction is scheduled for September 17.

It is reported that SellerX was founded in 2020. According to its official website, after successfully acquiring another aggregator Elevate Brands in May last year, it owns more than 80 Amazon brands. BlackRock and Victory Park Capital provided SellerX with a $400 million loan in 2021 and increased the loan when it acquired Elevate Brands. BlackRock has since converted the loan to non-accrual status - meaning that the borrower has stopped repaying it.

When Seller X failed to repay its loans on time and negotiations between investors and lenders reached an impasse, under German policy, creditors (BlackRock) could use such auctions to seize control of the company.

According to Marketplace Pulse, as of June this year, the cumulative financing amount of Amazon aggregators has reached 16 billion US dollars. Among them, Seller X has raised 1.4 billion US dollars, ranking third among the 75 aggregators counted by Marketplace Pulse. It is worth mentioning that the number of active aggregators counted by Marketplace Pulse was close to 90.

According to data, Seller X was previously valued at $1 billion. However, during an earnings call earlier this month, BlackRock said it was discussing with SellerX stakeholders to find a "path to recovery."

In addition to Seller X, other aggregators are also making adjustments. According to CNBC , Brand, ranked 21st in the Marketplace Pulse financing survey (with a financing amount of US$150 million) and Heyday, ranked 6th (with a financing amount of US$800 million), are planning to merge to form a new company, Essor . It is reported that Essor means "take-off" in French.

Heyday CEO Sebastian Rymarz said in a note to employees that the new company will be officially launched in the coming days and the combined company is expected to generate $400 million in annual revenue. Sebastian Rymarz also said that this merger is the result of our efforts to find a partner that began more than a year ago ; Branded is the perfect partner .

Apollo Global Management and BlackRock are also in talks to provide new debt financing to help the combined company make further acquisitions.

CNBC also mentioned that a person familiar with the matter revealed that Heyday is expected to lay off up to 70% of its employees in this merger . However, since the layoffs have not been announced, the person familiar with the matter did not want to be named. The person familiar with the matter also said that Brand will absorb Heyday's technical team and several brands, including the skin care line ZitSticka and Boka, which produces fluoride-free toothpaste and other dental care products.

The rise and development of Amazon aggregators once attracted a lot of investment and attention, but over time, this business model and sustainability have been challenged. In addition to Thrasio, the largest aggregator that filed for bankruptcy at the beginning of the year, the current status of Seller X, Heyday and Brand also proves that this field is now undergoing a major adjustment, and the future direction of these aggregators will still be a difficult problem that they have to face.

Amazon Aggregator

auction

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