Behind the success stories of top Amazon sellers lies a harsh reality: the platform's competitive barriers are rising dramatically, making it increasingly difficult for newcomers to break through.
The "Evergreen" Top Sellers: Six Years of Experience Becomes Standard
Recent data from Marketplace Pulse reveals that over 60% of Amazon's top 10,000 sellers registered their accounts before 2019. This dominance by early entrants demonstrates how time, accumulated experience, and operational capabilities have become critical advantages. Five years ago, four years of selling experience might have been sufficient to reach bestseller status; today, that threshold has risen to six years.
This phenomenon reflects both the structural advantages established sellers have built in branding, supply chain management, and customer loyalty, and the monumental challenges facing new entrants who must bring exceptional innovation and execution to compete.
The Brutal Attrition Rate: A Marketplace Reality Check
While the marketplace isn't completely closed to newcomers—about 10% of top sellers registered in the past two years—the overwhelming majority never reach such heights. Among all sellers registered before 2019, less than 8% remain active today. More recent cohorts show slightly better survival rates, but still, fewer than 30% of 2023 registrants remain active.
Perhaps most startling: over 30% of registered accounts never complete a single sale. Even those who do make initial sales face persistent operational challenges that prevent most from achieving sustainable businesses.
Mounting Pressures: Rising Costs and External Challenges
Escalating fulfillment fees and advertising costs have pushed some sellers' commission rates above 50% of revenue, dramatically squeezing profit margins. Beyond platform fees, sellers must navigate a gauntlet of external challenges including post-pandemic supply chain disruptions, container price volatility, inflationary pressures, and tariff fluctuations.
These compounding factors demand exceptional financial resilience and operational agility—qualities that often prove beyond reach for smaller sellers. For many, a single unexpected setback can trigger irreversible cash flow problems.
Alternative Paths: Distribution Models Offer New Options
Amid these challenges, distribution platforms are emerging as viable alternatives. These solutions handle product descriptions, automated warehousing, and order fulfillment—freeing sellers to focus on marketing and customer acquisition while mitigating inventory risk and improving delivery times through localized logistics networks.
For new entrants, such models can significantly lower operational barriers. Established sellers, meanwhile, continue generating over half of Amazon's GMV—demonstrating that sustainable businesses remain possible for those who adapt to evolving conditions.
The New Survival Formula: Precision and Diversification
Success in today's Amazon marketplace requires dual strategies: hyper-focused operational excellence in product selection, listing optimization, and customer service, combined with deliberate channel diversification to reduce platform dependency.
As competitive dynamics continue evolving, only sellers who master this balance—combining meticulous execution with strategic adaptability—will thrive in Amazon's increasingly complex ecosystem.