As the annual fall sales promotion approaches, Amazon sellers find themselves not celebrating anticipated profits but grappling with a wave of account suspensions. The platform's latest enforcement action has left many merchants unprepared, resulting in significant losses. Meanwhile, the cross-border service market experiences unprecedented demand, with appeal service prices skyrocketing amid chaotic conditions.
The Suspension Storm: Multi-Account Sellers Face Unprecedented Challenges
Beginning last weekend, numerous Amazon sellers reported receiving performance notification emails, followed by immediate account deactivations due to "brand association." The sweep has been extensive, with some sellers losing over a dozen accounts overnight. Distressed merchants shared their experiences: "Many were hit last night—I've seen someone lose 14 accounts in one go," and "Our main account was suspended along with six or seven authorized sub-accounts."
Root Causes: Brand Authorization Emerges as Primary Target
Industry analysis reveals this enforcement wave primarily targets accounts with problematic brand authorizations, falling into two main categories:
1. Association with unknown accounts: Typically resulting from improper operations by third-party service providers during store mergers, brand authorizations, or brand registrations.
2. Association with known accounts: Occurring when accounts share brand authorization with other stores that have committed violations, triggering a "brand chain reaction" suspension.
Additional complex cases include previously reinstated accounts facing new suspensions, cross-border site associations, legacy authorization issues from long-closed accounts, and compliant sellers caught in the crossfire.
This marks Amazon's third major brand association enforcement action since September, following recent measures like mandatory business verification. The platform appears committed to tightening oversight of multi-store operations.
Amazon's Rationale: Cleaning Up Brand Authorization Practices
The crackdown responds to widespread brand abuse, where sellers engaged in unauthorized reselling or excessive brand sharing to gain competitive advantages. These practices disrupted market order, compromised consumer interests, and damaged platform integrity.
Key risk factors include:
- Unauthorized reselling of branded products
- Excessive brand authorization creating redundant storefronts
- Improper brand registration by service providers
- Fraudulent activities on brand-linked listings
Amazon aims to cultivate a marketplace of unique sellers offering differentiated products. When multiple stores sell identical products under the same brand, it represents inefficient resource allocation that degrades user experience. Future brand verification will reportedly focus on authenticating genuine ownership relationships.
Market Fallout: Service Providers Capitalize on Sellers' Distress
The suspension wave has created a gold rush for appeal services, with prices surging from $1,000 to over $3,000 per case. Some providers have implemented dynamic pricing, doubling quotes within hours, leaving desperate sellers facing exorbitant costs.
Recovery Strategies: Targeted Solutions for Different Scenarios
Experienced sellers recommend identifying specific association causes before taking action:
For unknown account associations: Conduct comprehensive audits of potential linking factors and submit detailed plans of action documenting investigation findings and future prevention measures.
For known account associations: First remove all brand authorizations or delete authorized brand listings, then submit appeals explaining the association circumstances and demonstrating compliance with Amazon's multi-account policies.
Long-Term Compliance: The Case for Independent Operations
To minimize future risks, sellers should adopt single-brand, single-store models with completely independent operations. Key recommendations include:
- Minimizing brand authorizations to avoid chain-reaction suspensions
- Using dedicated IP addresses for each store
- Maintaining separate payment accounts
- Strictly adhering to Amazon's policies regarding authentic business practices
This enforcement action serves as a wake-up call for the e-commerce industry. As platform regulations intensify, sellers must shift from quantity-driven multi-account strategies to quality-focused, compliant operations to ensure sustainable business growth.