Jane Han is the North America editor for The Korea Times. Based in Seattle, she has covered business, culture and social issues across the United States for over 15 years. She previously worked at The Boston Globe.
Amazon, we finally meet
Korean "mink" blanket
This is the first in a series chronicling the trial-and-error journey of a momtrepreneur who juggles the thrills of running a business, writing and parenting ― ED.
By Jane Han
SEATTLE ― What do a traditional Yeongju hand plow, aka “homi,” and a good old Korean grandma-style mink blanket donning a huge crouching tiger have in common? They're the latest hot sellers on Amazon.
Youngjoo homi
The mega tech and retail giant with more than 100 million subscribers in the U.S. alone is getting increasingly popular in Korea, not as a place to shop but as a place to sell.
Even on Korean web engines like Naver, searching “Amazon seller” results in pages and pages of resources with catchy phrases like “how to retire early with Amazon” and “how to juggle a second job as an Amazon seller.”
So why is this becoming big in Korea? Why wouldn't it be?
Korea has great products and Amazon has a potential customer reach that is double the number of the entire South Korean population.
And since moving a year ago to Seattle, the city of coffee, the city of ubiquitous evergreen trees and, of course, the city of Amazon, it's been interesting to get a closer look at the insanely popular e-commerce empire.
Drive through the hip and booming South Lake Union neighborhood just north of downtown Seattle and you'll find yourself smack in the middle of Amazon land, where blocks and blocks of Amazon buildings are accented with everything from its world's first checkout-less grocery store to its own indoor rainforest. Yes, a real, thriving rainforest enclosed in gigantic glass domes.
Having been an Amazon addict since 2013, precisely around the time I gave birth to twins and naturally succumbed to the compulsive need to buy every baby-related product imaginable, it almost felt surreal to see the sprawling physical presence of the retail genie that continues to make my shopping wishes come true in two days or less.
And here in Seattle, what was more interesting was coming across a variety of people who became sellers on the platform themselves ― some highly paid tech workers casually trying out the successful business model and some stay-at-home moms looking to make some extra, or sometimes, serious money.
Which got me thinking ― what if I sold on Amazon, too?
A friend of a friend who makes a good $100,000 a year selling yoga mats and another friend of a friend of a friend quitting his full-time job to go all-in on his promising new Amazon business all seemed like convincing reasons to at least check out what the fuss is all about.
Oh but where to start.
This column is going to take you along the amateur's journey into figuring out the ropes of becoming a seller on one of the most complex and competitive online marketplaces in the world.
And I may have just the perfect product to sell.