Amazon & E-Commerce Weekly News #57

09.15.2026 12:50 PM

Amazon Ads expands into ChatGPT, Amazon tightens product bundle rules, TikTok Shop opens UK-EU cross-border selling, and FedEx simplifies import duties

Amazon and E-commerce Weekly News For Sellers 57

News #1. 
Amazon Ads Starts Serving Ads in ChatGPT

Amazon Ads and OpenAI have launched a pilot allowing select U.S. advertisers to extend their Amazon Ads campaigns into ChatGPT. For now, access remains limited to a small group of advertisers.

What happened

Starting September 10, select Amazon Ads advertisers in the U.S. gained the ability to reach consumers directly inside ChatGPT. According to Retail Dive, placements are available through Amazon DSP as a managed service, with Amazon helping advertisers set up and optimize campaigns. 


This is not an integration of Amazon’s product catalog into ChatGPT for shopping. Instead, it gives Amazon Ads a new off-Amazon advertising surface, reaching consumers while they are researching products and comparing options.

Why it matters

ChatGPT is gaining traction as a product discovery channel. According to PYMNTS Intelligence, 41% of surveyed millennials use ChatGPT to discover and evaluate products, compared with 57% for Google and 37% for Amazon. Among millennials who used generative AI for pre-purchase research, 42% said it had mostly or completely replaced their previous research methods. 


For Amazon Ads, the pilot creates an opportunity to reach shoppers before they arrive on Amazon. Advertising competition is increasingly extending into AI interfaces where consumers research products, compare alternatives, and narrow down purchase decisions.

What it means for e-commerce sellers

The pilot is currently limited to select U.S. advertisers, so most Amazon sellers do not need to change their campaigns yet. If access expands, however, ChatGPT could become another customer acquisition channel within the Amazon Ads ecosystem, particularly during the research and consideration stage.

Source: Amazon Ads, Retail Dive, PYMNTS Intelligence

Want Better Results From Amazon Ads?

Amazon Ads is expanding to new platforms, including ChatGPT. We set up and optimize campaigns, reduce wasted ad spend, and help brands scale sales.

Improve Your Amazon Ads

News #2.
Amazon Tightens Rules for Physical Product Bundles

Starting January 11, 2027, Amazon will change its Product Bundling policy. In most cases, physical bundles sold as a single product must be created and packaged by the original manufacturer or brand.

What happened  

Amazon distinguishes between two types of bundles. Hard kit bundles are products physically packaged together and sold as a single item with their own UPC/EAN or GTIN exemption. Under the new rules, these bundles generally must be created by the original manufacturer or brand. For example, a reseller will no longer be able to combine a branded product with a complementary item and sell the package as a separate ASIN. 

There are exceptions. Sellers can still create physical bundles for gift baskets and cameras. In other categories, they will need a Letter of Authorization from the brands or manufacturers of all products in the bundle, granting permission to repackage and sell them together. 

Virtual Bundles are not subject to the same restriction because the products are not physically repackaged and can be combined virtually.

Why it matters  

Seller-created physical bundles are commonly used to differentiate listings and increase average order value. The new policy limits that strategy for resellers: without brand authorization, they will no longer be able to simply package multiple products together and create a separate ASIN. 


The impact is smaller for private label brands, which can create and package their own physical bundles. For resellers, Virtual Bundles may offer an alternative where the feature is available for their store, brand, and fulfillment setup.

What it means for e-commerce sellers  

Review your existing bundle ASINs and identify who actually creates and packages each bundle. If a physical bundle is assembled by the seller rather than the manufacturer or brand, check whether an exception applies or obtain the required Letter of Authorization before January 11. For eligible products, consider Virtual Bundles as an alternative that does not require physical repackaging.

Source: Amazon

News #3.
Amazon and TikTok Shop Have Few Top Sellers in Common

A Marketplace Pulse analysis found that just 498 of the top 10,000 sellers on Amazon.com and TikTok Shop in the U.S. appear on both lists - roughly 5%. Success on one marketplace is a weak predictor of success on the other.

What happened  

Marketplace Pulse matched the business names of the top 10,000 sellers on each platform. Even among the 498 sellers present on both, their Amazon ranking showed little correlation with their position on TikTok Shop. 


The gap is even clearer at the top. One in five of TikTok Shop’s top 100 sellers also ranks among Amazon’s top 10,000, while only one in 25 of Amazon’s top 100 appears in TikTok Shop’s top 10,000. 


The difference likely reflects how the two platforms drive purchases. Amazon primarily captures existing shopping intent through search, while TikTok can generate demand through short-form video, recommendations, and creator content.

Why it matters  

The strengths that drive performance on Amazon — search ranking, reviews, advertising, and FBA delivery — do not automatically translate into TikTok Shop success. On TikTok, performance depends more heavily on whether a product works well in video, can demonstrate its value quickly, and can scale through creator partnerships. 


TikTok can also influence sales beyond its own marketplace. A product gaining traction through TikTok content may drive more shoppers to search for the brand on Amazon. That means TikTok’s impact should not be measured only by TikTok Shop sales, but also by whether branded search demand increases on Amazon.

What it means for e-commerce sellers  

Don’t simply replicate an Amazon playbook on TikTok Shop. For products that work well in short-form video, test creator content and track whether searches for your brand increase on Amazon. TikTok can generate both direct sales and additional demand that converts elsewhere.

Source: Marketplace Pulse

News #4. 
TikTok Shop Opens Cross-Border Selling Between the UK and EU

TikTok Shop is expanding cross-border selling between the UK and European markets. UK sellers can access 12 EU countries, while sellers in several EU markets will be able to reach UK shoppers.

What happened  

Through its Sell Across EU program, TikTok Shop is giving UK sellers access to 12 markets: Germany, Italy, France, Spain, Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Austria, Greece, Portugal, and Hungary. 

To qualify, merchants must already be active on TikTok Shop UK, have generated sales within the past 30 days, maintain good account health, and have no substantial negative balance. 

For UK-to-EU orders, sellers can use Ship by Seller. Ship by TikTok may also be available to merchants with an overseas warehouse. Returns add another requirement: sellers need an EU return address or may face additional return-processing costs.

Why it matters  

TikTok Shop is giving existing merchants a way to reach multiple European markets through the same sales channel. But cross-border expansion also adds shipping, returns, tax, and customs costs, so a larger addressable market does not automatically translate into profitable sales. 


The expansion also pushes TikTok Shop beyond a primarily local social commerce model and further into cross-border e-commerce.

What it means for e-commerce sellers  

TikTok Shop sellers should check program eligibility in Seller Center and calculate unit economics for each new market, including shipping, returns, taxes, and customs costs. For private label brands, the program offers another way to test demand in new countries through an existing TikTok Shop operation.

Source: TikTok Shop

Other E-commerce News

Amazon Speeds Up FBA Inbound Shipping To The U.S. East Coast  

Amazon Global Logistics has launched Standard Ocean Express for shipments using Seller Managed Placement. Cargo moves by ocean through the Port of Los Angeles and then directly by rail to Amazon fulfillment centers on the East Coast. Amazon says the route cuts transit time versus its standard service, without specifying by how much, helping reduce the risk of inventory shortages during peak demand.

FedEx Launches Tools To Calculate Duties Before International Shipping  
FedEx has introduced Global Trade Navigator, which helps businesses classify products for customs, estimate duties and taxes in advance, and identify potential clearance issues before shipping. In a FedEx survey of 1,000 small-business representatives, 68% said they regularly encounter situations where customers are surprised by duties when their orders arrive.

U.S. Consumer Goods Market Is Splitting Between Premium And Value  
NIQ and World Data Lab analysis shows that growth in the $1.1+ trillion U.S. consumer goods market is increasingly concentrated in premium and value segments, while the middle is losing share. The same shopper may trade up in categories that matter to them while saving elsewhere. For private label brands, that makes positioning more important: products need to either justify a premium or deliver a clear value advantage.

Source: Amazon, Digital Commerce 360, NIQ

If your Amazon business, product, or listing isn’t reaching its full potential, schedule a free consultation with us—no obligations, just expert guidance! ↓

​​Book a call now…

Up to 45-min duration video-call

 Topics we'll discuss:
  1. Your Brand Story: Share your background and issues what your face up. 
  2. Current Performance: Tell us about your Amazon business currently — successes, challenges, etc.
  3. Vision for the Future: Describe your ideal goals and growth plans.
 The next steps — there are two options
  1. If it's a fit: We'll begin preparing a customized Amazon Growth Audit for you.
  2. If not a match: No problem at all, you have no obligations moving forward.
Tags :
Categories :