Amazon.com has entered the catalog business–sort of.
The online superstore began testing more than 1,000 “peeper” catalogs in eight categories on May 22, said spokesperson Carrie Peters.
Visitors to Amazon.com don’t link to the actual online catalogs. Instead, they click to mini-catalogs from merchants such as Tiffany & Co., Calyx & Corolla and Brisky Pet Products, and must call a toll-free number displayed on the site to order products or a paper catalog.
The catalog displays are free. Peters said catalogers will not be charged during the testing period. The service is “open to any catalog,” she said.
Categories featured are arts and hobbies, pet toys, industrial supplies, medical supplies, science supplies, lifestyle, car parts and home furnishings. The categories are not competitive with Amazon’s core product offerings.
Why these categories? “We felt these categories were areas that aren’t easy for customers to find online,” Peters said. “Amazon wants to be the place where people can find, discover and buy anything they want to online.”
Customer reviews and personalization technology will be available in the catalog arena.
Peters would not say precisely what the Seattle-based online behemoth is testing, other than “customer interest.” But Amazon has done well in the past charging retailers for the opportunity to market to its 26 million customers.
Amazon is not yet profitable, and has been unsuccessful at reducing its debt. For the first quarter of 2002, the company trimmed its net loss from $234.1 million in first-quarter 2001 to $23.2 million. Revenue rose from $700.4 million to $847.4 million.
A restaurant-listing service also debuted May 22.
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