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Why Amazon is full of crap

Phil Edwards | May 23, 2026



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Shenzhen serves as the global epicenter for the e-commerce supply chain, specifically anchored by the massive China New South City industrial park, a facility larger than any American shopping mall where virtually every major Amazon seller and distributor congregates to cross-pollinate. Located in the electronics hub often called the Silicon Valley of China, this area is visible on Baidu Maps via a Hong Kong VPN as the physical heart of an ongoing economic revolution. Inside this massive building and its surrounding distribution hubs, you will find live streaming setups and the headquarters of countless Chinese factories and middlemen who have bypassed intermediaries like Walmart and eBay to sell directly to the world.

These Shenzhen-based merchants utilize Amazon’s infrastructure, specifically Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) and logistics initiatives like Project Dragonboat, to dramatically lower freight costs and streamline the process of shipping overseas for global dominance. By leveraging aggressive recruiting programs like Project Marco Polo, Chinese sellers have exploded in market share, surpassing 50% of new seller registrations by 2024 according to data from Marketplace Pulse. These sellers capitalize on significant cost advantages in logistics, photography, and business management while utilizing Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and sponsored listings to push products under gibberish trademarked brand names like Cozyease and Gorglitter to the top of the algorithm.

The strategy in Shenzhen is deeply transactional rather than brand-focused, prioritizing high SKU counts and sales volume over emotional investment, often resulting in “crap” products flooding the marketplace to satisfy consumer demand for the lowest price. While some legitimate brands like Anker have emerged from this system, many sellers engage in black hat tactics, review manipulation, and rapid brand generation to exploit Amazon’s obsession with customer experience. This ecosystem has fundamentally shifted the power dynamic from US and EU sellers to a hyper-regionalized network in China, where factories in Jinjiang and Shandong produce goods that are aggressively marketed to Western consumers.

Written by Phil Edwards

Comments

This post currently has 25 comments.

  1. @PerfectHumanSpecimen

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    I was part of a low budget film and had multiple responsibilities. One of those responsibilities was audio engineer, and the other I was in charge of ordering the costumes on amazon because they have a great return policy. Once filming completed I was in charge of returning everything

  2. @lonewolf5896

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    Dont buy any Chinese crap from Amazon. I bought sanding belts….blew up in my face and injured me….wouldnt reimburse me. I also bought a countertop insert stovetop….arrived with a 5/16 warp so wouldnt sit flat…it was sent back and seller offered me a 50.00 Amazon card….absolute garbage stuff BEWARE.

  3. @noonedude101

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    It infuriates me that I can’t shop by country of origin on Amazon.

    I like to buy German steel products, American aluminum products, Middle Eastern textiles, etc.

    But it is insanely rare to see a country of origin listed on Amazon, and it’s only if the seller puts it in the description.

    I also regularly visit Shenzhen. I’ve been to the building they refer to. If you’re paying $10USD for it on Amazon, I’m getting it for $2 there.

  4. @mwatkins0590

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    Did you use AI largely to make the UI of your game? it looks extremely similar to another game (battletech) and im wondering if they just phoned in the UI now.

  5. @Andoy12

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    Boy, so much better to shop IN PERSON for good quality product! Amazon quality is Atrocious … bought a pair of so-called "Dockers" shoes that were indescribably poor quality. We accept this stuff?? And who the hell wants to buy junk sight-unseen? Idiocy.

  6. @madrush24

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    How I despise Jeff Bezos and his dynasty. I hate that I use Amazon. I live in the boonies and the closest Target/Walmart kinda store is an hour away at least. But for some reason, I get Prime. So I sometimes need to order stuff you can't find at a mom and pop grocery store. But I always do external reviews like Outdoorsman magazine Top 10 whatever. Eat the rich.

  7. @mikalishious

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    Online-shopping is a problem: It keeps people inside instead-of out in the community; It makes overseas crap-companies rich and Jeff Bezos richer, and takes the money out of the local economy…

  8. @pastsubstance2930

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    I gave up and just thrift everything and I mean everything from furniture to kitchen utensils etc. Amazon is junk. At least within the “junk” that people threw out, it had to be filtered to figure out to be junk by the thrift store. Anything unique, I have to put more effort.

  9. @-robster-robster-

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    Amazon is going to the dogs, i have been a good customer buying a lot of items over the past 20 years and found them somewhat of a security blanket for purchasing online safely with good value for money over the years and being a Prime Member for about 15 years to having serious doubts over the last year.
    It is now littered with Chinese start up brands that can shut down and respawn instantly , products that are garbage want you to pay as much or more than the product is worth to return it and maybe you will get the refund????
    Prime member waiting 2 to 3 weeks for a simple tool you need for a job to get done that weekend ??
    Quality of things arriving not as advertised or functional???
    Its sold its soul and turned into a mess………
    Rebirth of the high street incoming hopefully

  10. @calorion

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    This didn’t answer anything. 1. Where are these sellers getting all these different products? The reason manufacturers get invested in their products is because they can’t quickly shift to different ones! 2. Why are people buying the crap? Why does this *work*? 3. If it’s crap, and people don’t like it, why haven’t competitors arisen? 4. How does Amazon profit from this, if they’re not the middleman, and don’t take a cut?

  11. @JBG1968

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    There’s something to be said about actually going to a store and being able to see and touch the actual product in person before you buy it .

  12. @karlholder5746

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    Have not received anything on time from Amazon since before Christmas last year. The delays happen at the last minute when we are expecting the package that day. This happens so often I think they are just full of it when it comes to delivery promises and availability. Amazon has become America's TEMU.

  13. @Cruciferousgreens

    May 23, 2026 at 6:30 am

    Hey Phil! Great video but I feel like you completely left drop-shippers off the hook here! A huge proportion of these fly by night brands are US scammers too, we can’t just blame china

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