Two Amazon stores went bankrupt one after another, all employees were fired and operations ceased!

Those who got rich from Amazon are now facing bankruptcy.

No one can always be the lucky one favored by the times. On the Amazon platform, big sellers are still laying off employees and closing down.

It is understood that Care/of, the top seller in Amazon's fitness category that was once popular in the US consumer market, as well as Amazon's power meter and indoor fitness bike brand Stages Cycling, have ceased operations and laid off all employees.

Just earlier this month, Care/of, a well-known brand in Amazon's top health products category, ceased operations and laid off 143 employees before July 3.

Currently, the official website of Care/of, a popular brand on Amazon, has been closed. Previously, Care/of said in an announcement on its official website: "We explored options to keep the brand going, but the outcome was failure."

Care/of was founded in New York, USA in 2016. It is one of the first companies to customize personalized nutrition plans for the public. It mainly customizes vitamin packages for consumers to meet the needs of the target group in terms of healthy diet. Through an innovative 5-minute health questionnaire, Care/of tailors personalized vitamin and supplement packages for users to meet the needs of healthy diet.

Its products include a variety of nutritional health products such as vitamins, minerals, probiotics, etc., which are provided in 30-day quantities and users can purchase them in free combinations.

Since its establishment, it has rapidly opened up the global market and won a large number of loyal customers with its advanced business philosophy and personalized service model. Such a personalized sales concept has enabled it to successfully squeeze into the industry where Amazon sells well, and has also attracted the influx of capital.

Two years after Care/of was founded, it raised $46 million in funding. Data shows that as of February 2020, 5 million people have participated in Care/of's core questionnaire test. In the same year, Care/of had its highlight moment. In November 2020, the global pharmaceutical giant Bayer Group acquired 70% of Care/of's shares for $225 million.

After only eight years , Care/of was shut down . It was reported that the reason for the closure was that the company failed to obtain sufficient funds to maintain the normal operation of the business. In addition, the company also faced fierce competition from other competitors and a decline in consumer demand for nutritional supplements.

As the epidemic gradually ends, consumer demand for supplements begins to decline. In addition, Amazon's nutritional supplement market is highly competitive, with many brands and sellers competing for market share . These competitors may offer more attractive prices, wider product lines or more advanced customization technology, so their personalized questionnaire model has lost its appeal, resulting in their market share being gradually squeezed.

In addition, Care/of's parent company , Bayer Group, was also in financial trouble , facing multiple challenges including lawsuits, debt pressure, and declining performance . In order to optimize resource allocation and reduce financial risks, Bayer was forced to stop further investment in Care/of, which undoubtedly accelerated Care/of's decline.

Ultimately, the once high-profile brand was forced to cease operations and laid off 143 employees by July 3.

Recently, Amazon's well-known power meter and indoor fitness bike brand Stages Cycling announced the cessation of operations and laid off all employees.

Since the end of April, Stages Cycling's manufacturing and R&D headquarters in Boulder, Colorado, has been closed and all employees have been laid off. In Stages’ brand store on Amazon, all products are shown as “ currently unavailable”.

Headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, Stages Cycling has been a major player in the cycling market since its founding in 2009 and has multiple offices around the world, working with clients including The Gym Group, David Lloyd, SoulCycle, and more.

The first concern was that the brand's e-commerce website showed that almost all products were out of stock some time ago. Subsequently, reports from Escape Collective and multiple sources revealed that Stages had stopped placing orders with suppliers and stopped shipping to customers. This series of actions led to the company completely ceasing all operations.

In addition, it is worth noting that after the news of Stages' cessation of operations, Taiwan's large bicycle manufacturer Giant Bicycles is suing Stages for approximately $14 million in unpaid invoices. This dispute has been going on for a long time. Between June 2022 and January 2024, Stages owed Giant a number of payments, including power meters, fitness bikes, product parts, storage fees and freight, and the unpaid invoices totaled 161.

The lawsuit has exacerbated the financial pressure on the already troubled company . Interestingly, while suing Stages, Giant also poached four of its top executives. From its former highs to the bottom, all signs indicate that this household name bicycle brand is basically powerless to recover.

Nowadays, the global E-bike market demand is booming. As an important player in this field, Stages is out of the market at this time, which is regrettable.

The current economic situation has caused many big sellers to suffer heavy blows and fall from their pedestal. Even Amazon's number one seller is on the decline.

Now that Care/of and Stages Cycling have officially ceased operations, there are many more cases than I can list.

The closure and bankruptcy of so many big brands on Amazon is also a warning to other companies: as the global consumer market is constantly changing, sellers need to adjust their business strategies in a timely manner to reduce the possibility of the company falling into debt disputes and financial difficulties.

In general, cross-border sellers will still face huge challenges in 2024. Although there are frequent bad news about overseas sellers, it is also a good opportunity for domestic sellers with strength in related fields to increase brand awareness. If sellers can seize the opportunity when all the giants are weak, they will be able to quickly develop their own brands.