Influencers are the new legal liability

Forecast for sellers this week: heavy legal storms from influencer lawsuits, rising holiday fee pressure, and a brief tariff sunshine break. 🌦️

Here’s the week in bites:

• Influencer marketing sparks a $50M lawsuit 💸
• Want the hacks agencies don’t usually share? 👀
• Amazon’s holiday playbook comes with pricey fees 🎄
• Tariffs take a 90-day holiday break 📦
• Get Looped In and take the chaos out of ecommerce accounting ✉️
• We’ll link your newsletter for FREE. Send your applications here. 🤝

BLACK MARKET

Influencer marketing isn’t the gold rush it used to be. 

The days of “flash a product, drop a code, cash in” are over. Now, regulators are circling, lawsuits are landing, and sloppy campaigns are turning “collabs” into lawsuits.

The latest cautionary tales? Revolve and SHEIN.

🍪 Quick bits

• In April this year, Revolve got slapped with a $50M lawsuit for influencers skipping #ad disclosures while promoting products.
• Back in 2023, SHEIN’s influencer trip to China backfired hard—critics called it factory conditions whitewashing, nuking trust instead of building it.
• Regulators worldwide are watching not just big brands, but micro-influencers and smaller sellers too.
• Transparency isn’t optional anymore—it’s the only way influencer marketing pays off without burning your brand.

💬 SellerBites’ take

Let’s be honest, small sellers have less margin for error.

Revolve can eat legal fees. You can’t. But you do have one advantage: agility. You can launch trust-first influencer campaigns faster than the big guys can run damage control.

And when the hype fades, it’s trust that keeps carts full. 😋

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BITES OF THE WEEK

• Click to Scam: The Federal Trade Commission warns shoppers of messages and links pretending to be from Amazon.
• Exporter Uncertainty: Exporters air out their tariff-related concerns during the China Cross-Border E-Commerce Trade Fair.
• Donate to Perform: TikTok Live streamers can set up performative responses to "Viewer Wishes" and donations.
• Dramatic Declines: Multiple Amazon sellers report a drastic drop in sales, citing economic challenges.

AMAZON NEWS

Tariff suspension turns Q4 into a stockpile rush

Just in time for peak season, tariffs on China-based imports are taking a holiday. The Trump administration has suspended duties for 90 days, cutting rates from a brutal 125% down to 30%. 

🍪 Quick bits

• Tariffs drop from 125% to 30% for China-based imports.
• A $100 product that landed at $225 now lands at $130—a $95 per-unit swing.
• Brands are stockpiling at 3PLs before the pause ends mid-November.
• Advantage still tilts toward China-based sellers with undervalued declarations and currency perks.
• Relief is temporary, political shifts could snap tariffs back overnight.

💬 SellerBites’ take

Call it what it is: a 90-day flash sale on survival.

If you’ve got cash, now’s the moment to stack inventory. Because once mid-November hits, tariffs could rocket back to “are you kidding me” levels, and there’s no guarantee Washington hands out a second holiday miracle.

BIG IDEA

Is the 2025 holiday season worth the fees?

Amazon just unveiled its 2025 holiday playbook, hyping Prime Big Deal Days, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday as “bigger than ever.” 

Translation: expect record-breaking sales—if you can afford Amazon’s seasonal “cover charge.”

🍪 Quick bits

• Inventory cutoffs are already on the clock:
  • Prime Big Deal Days: Aug 29 (AWD), Sept 10 (minimal splits), Sept 19 (optimized splits)
  • Black Friday & Cyber Monday: Oct 9 (AWD), Oct 20 (minimal splits), Oct 30 (optimized splits)
• Deals come with a price tag:
  • Best Deals: 15%+ off, $1,000 fee (30% off = boosted visibility)
  • Lightning Deals: 20%+ off, $500 fee
  • Prime Exclusive Discounts: 15%+ off, $100–$245 fee
  • Coupons: 5%+ off, $5 + 2.5% of sales

💬 SellerBites’ take

Every Q4, “holiday spirit” feels more like “holiday pay-to-play.”

The question isn’t if you should play—it’s whether you can afford to sit out. Because in Amazon’s holiday game, the only thing costlier than paying the fee is missing the party. 🎄