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Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) has agreed to allow its logistics tools on Shopify's platform in a deal that signals a truce in one of the biggest e-commerce rivalries.
The two companies said Wednesday that Amazon's Buy with Prime program will be available for sellers who use Shopify's services, effectively integrating the benefits of Prime into websites beyond Amazon's main marketplace.
"We’ve been thrilled with the feedback merchants have shared about Buy with Prime, including the increased shopper conversion and new shopper acquisition," said Peter Larsen, Amazon's vice president of Buy with Prime, in a news release. “The build of this app was a collaboration with Shopify, and we’re excited to help merchants not only grow their businesses, but also save time and resources — all while giving Prime members even more places to enjoy their shopping benefits."
For sellers, it opens up Amazon's logistics tools and vast fulfillment network without selling through the actual Amazon marketplace. All U.S.-based merchants will be able to use it by the end of September.
Buy with Prime launched more than a year ago and looked to be Amazon's answer to Shopify, which spent the Covid-19 pandemic courting third-party sellers that had been using Amazon. The service allows Prime members to shop on third-party sites while still receiving the fast shipping and free delivery that Amazon's fulfillment network provides. Not long after the launch, Amazon shuttered Selz, a Sydney-based startup it had acquired in an effort to compete with Shopify.
Shopify, like Amazon, saw enormous growth during the pandemic and became a formidable competitor to Amazon, the company with the largest e-commerce market share.
Before Buy with Prime, Amazon has used other deals to bolster its platform's roster of third-party sellers, including a July 2021 deal with BigCommerce that allowed Amazon's multichannel fulfillment to expand to companies that don't sell on Amazon.
