Amazon Sellers Hit by Sales Drop Warehouse Delays Before Fall Promo

Published: 01/16/2026
Cross-border E-commerce Amazon ERP System
With Amazon's autumn promotion approaching, cross-border e-commerce sellers face the dual challenges of declining sales and warehouse congestion. This article analyzes the reasons for the sales slump and overstocking issues, and proposes strategies such as optimizing inventory management, focusing on precise traffic, and refining cost control. It also introduces how E-Cang ERP can help sellers improve operational efficiency and reduce costs through intelligent advertising management and stock preparation risk avoidance, preparing them for the year-end promotion. This will help sellers navigate the challenges and maximize opportunities during the peak season.
Amazon Sellers Hit by Sales Drop Warehouse Delays Before Fall Promo

As Amazon's fall promotional season approaches, cross-border e-commerce sellers should be preparing for peak sales. Instead, they're facing a harsh reality: declining order volumes and severely congested warehouses. What's causing these challenges, and how can sellers respond?

Declining Sales: A Multifaceted Challenge

Since September, Amazon marketplaces in the U.S., Europe, Japan, and other regions have experienced widespread sales declines, with some sellers seeing reductions of 70-80% and traffic cuts by half. This situation results from multiple converging factors:

  • Economic downturn and weakened consumption: Global economic uncertainty has reduced consumer purchasing power, directly impacting cross-border e-commerce sales.
  • Competition from emerging platforms: The rise of new e-commerce platforms like TikTok Shop has attracted significant user traffic, eroding Amazon's market share.
  • Amazon policy changes: Amazon's suspension of Google ads in the U.S. region has dramatically reduced off-platform traffic.
  • Promotional cooling period and algorithm adjustments: The pre-promotion consumer hesitation period from October 7-8, combined with platform algorithm changes affecting traffic distribution, has caught many sellers unprepared.

Warehouse Overload: A Major Obstacle for Peak Season

Contrasting sharply with sales declines, Amazon warehouses face severe congestion. Key facilities like SCK8 in the western U.S. and FTW1 in the central U.S. continue rejecting shipments and slowing appointment releases, leaving numerous shipments stranded at ports. This congestion threatens Black Friday and year-end promotional preparations due to:

  • External fulfillment pressures: Global supply chain instability, including port congestion and shipping delays, exacerbates Amazon's fulfillment challenges.
  • Amazon storage capacity limits: Repeated reductions in storage capacity throughout the year leave sellers unable to manage inventory flexibly during peak season. Many containers arriving in late August still await warehouse entry, delaying holiday preparations and increasing storage costs.

Strategic Responses: Precision Operations and Smart Management

Facing dual pressures of declining sales and warehouse congestion, cross-border e-commerce sellers must implement effective strategies:

  1. Optimize inventory management and mitigate risk:
    • Avoid high-risk warehouses by proactively diverting SKUs to available alternatives, improving turnover efficiency.
    • Leverage overseas warehouses for global data synchronization, enhancing shipping timeliness and inventory utilization.
    • Implement intelligent distribution rules to compare transportation costs and delivery times across warehouses, automatically selecting optimal shipping routes to reduce expenses.
  2. Focus on targeted traffic to boost conversion:
    • Strengthen organic rankings through listing optimization and product quality improvements to gain more free traffic.
    • Enhance keyword conversion rates by refining keyword selection and ad placements to compensate for reduced off-platform traffic.
    • Utilize Amazon AMC audience targeting to identify high-conversion customer segments and reduce ineffective ad spending.
  3. Implement precise cost control to protect profits:
    • Conduct detailed product profit calculations to adjust pricing strategies and maintain margins.
    • Monitor fulfillment timelines to quickly identify and resolve issues, avoiding delay-related costs.

Integrated Solutions for Competitive Advantage

Professional cross-border e-commerce ERP systems can help sellers improve operational efficiency, reduce costs, and overcome these challenges. These systems provide comprehensive management across advertising, inventory, and supply chain operations, helping sellers stand out in competitive markets.

Key capabilities include:

  • Smart advertising management: Features like time-based bid adjustments, keyword ranking monitoring, and automated exposure strategies for new products optimize ad performance. Historical AMC data can identify high-conversion audiences for targeted campaigns.
  • Inventory risk mitigation: Dynamic analysis of warehouse turnover risks provides early warnings about congestion points and distribution recommendations. Multi-warehouse coordination ensures global inventory synchronization, while intelligent shipping route selection minimizes costs and delays.

To navigate the pre-promotion operational challenges and warehouse difficulties, sellers must proactively adjust strategies while staying informed about platform changes. Comprehensive management tools can enhance coordination across advertising, sales, inventory, and supply chain operations, ensuring thorough preparation for year-end promotions.

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