The pandemic has caused more than 1.5 billion students worldwide to stay at home and study online. To ensure continued education, computers, Wi-Fi, mobile phones, cameras, and more have become urgently needed educational supplies. As the pandemic eases in China and abroad, arrangements for reopening schools and resuming classes are also gradually being put on the agenda. Overseas educational institutions and governments are also making urgent preparations for how to ensure that students can continue learning through online classes, how to restore normal teaching afterward, and how to keep campuses safe:

On April 21, the governor of California said that one-fifth of students currently lack the necessary learning devices, and that at least 447,451 laptop computers and 340,202 Wi-Fi hotspots are needed to ensure that students can attend online classes normally.

Researchers at University College London in the UK said that schools must consider how to ensure that, after reopening, they can provide students with an appropriate learning environment and resources.

On May 25, the Prime Minister of Japan announced that regions across the country, including the 42 prefectures where the state of emergency had already been lifted, would gradually ease requests to stay home and suspend business operations, and move forward with reopening schools.

This shows that purchasing school supplies for remote learning and preparing for schools to reopen has become an important current task for educational institutions overseas.

Online shopping can effectively reduce person-to-person contact while providing a wide range of school supplies and high-quality delivery services. As the preferred channel for businesses and institutions to purchase online, Amazon Business has already provided large quantities of learning and educational supplies to students at more than 1,386 schools4 in more than 30 cities across the United States. For Chinese cross-border e-commerce sellers, expanding into school supplies through Amazon Business can help capture the significant sales opportunities brought by the back-to-school season in the second half of the year.
The corresponding Amazon Business buyers are mostly educational institutions serving all age groups, specifically early childhood education, K–12 education, and higher education. Among them, K-12 basic education institutions have greater procurement demand, accounting for 61%5 of educational institutions’ total procurement. School supplies are in demand year-round, with relatively higher demand during the back-to-school season and at year-end.

Early childhood education: kindergartens, daycare classes, etc.👉🏻
Amazon Business customer representative: Endeavor Schools
A private early childhood education institution located in Miami, Florida, with 42 preschools in 10 U.S. states and 9,000 students6. Amazon Business has helped it significantly simplify its procurement process, allowing school leaders across locations to centralize purchasing and share resources.

K–12 basic education: kindergarten through 12th grade👉🏻
Business customer representative: Shelby County Schools
One of the highest-rated school systems in Alabama, it has long been committed to providing students with high-quality education and teaching resources. With more than 1,000 buyers on Amazon Business, it highly values the business purchasing features and procurement system provided by Amazon.

Higher education: colleges and universities, adult education institutions, etc.
Amazon Business customer representative: Johns Hopkins University
A world-renowned top private university, it can use Amazon Business not only to meet the school’s need for a wide variety of products, but also to source from more than 9,000 small businesses, creating significant business opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises around the world.

Against the backdrop of strong market demand, some Chinese sellers have already successfully achieved annual sales of more than $1 million in the school supplies category!If you’re eager to break into this category, first listen to the key tips for striking gold shared by a seller from Tonglu, Hangzhou:

Since 2017, we have gradually launched Amazon Business in the United States marketplace, Europe marketplace, and Japan marketplace. To succeed in the school supplies category, before selling you should first conduct target market research and data analysis, and optimize and adjust your product selection based on the preferences of target consumers; products in this category must win with a user-centered mindset, so while focusing on product quality, you should also balance product innovation and outer packaging; for fulfillment, you should understand the size limits for Fulfillment by Amazon, while also working with third-party logistics to leave enough room for later market expansion.

With such a promising opportunity in front of you, are you already eager to go overseas and show what you can do?Next, let us walk you through 2020 hot-selling school supplies trends for Amazon Business in the US, Europe, and Japan, to help you identify the best opportunities!

Amazon Business customers: K-12 education, higher education
Hot-selling item details:Notebooks have a wide range of uses and are often used by students to take notes, write, and more. Educational institutions have high demand for centralized procurement, so pay attention to product packaging size when selling.

Business buyers: early childhood education, K-12 basic education, higher education
Hot-selling details: Whiteboard sets can be used in a variety of scenarios. Teachers can handwrite activity calendars, class schedules, and memos, and assign tasks. We recommend incorporating more use cases for educational institutions into your product descriptions and key selling points.

Business buyers: K-12 basic education, higher education
Hot sellers explained: Pencils are widely used in a variety of settings, including learning and campus administration. Buyers care a lot about the eco-friendly properties of materials, especially whether the materials are safe and non-toxic and whether they write smoothly. In addition, we recommend selling them in sets of 10–15 and performing box drop tests before sale to improve packaging quality.

Business buyers: K-12 education, higher education
Hot sale details: European consumers like this type of pen (calligraphy pen) for drawing. Color, material, and whether the pens can be reused are all factors buyers consider, and selling 10–15 pens as a set is more popular.

Business buyers: early childhood education, K-12 basic education
Hot-selling details: Backpacks, an essential item for students, are in high demand among both business buyers and individual consumers. Buyers look for multifunctional features, such as pull handles, wheels, and multiple compartments. We recommend offering multiple styles and making sure to avoid infringing on pattern copyrights.

Business buyers: early childhood education, K-12 basic education
Hot-selling details: Learning through play helps develop foundational preschool skills, and educational instruments such as handbells help make learning more enjoyable for children in the classroom.

Business buyers: early childhood education, K-12 basic education
Hot-selling details: Drawing and doodling can help develop children's creativity. These products are often used in preschool institutions, are consumable items, and have high repeat purchase demand, so we recommend setting more attractive quantity discounts.

Business buyers: early childhood education, K-12 basic education
Hot sale details: implementing strong safety measures is an important need for early childhood education institutions. The product design must take the usage scenario into account, such as stairs, balconies, and TVs, and it should clearly label demonstrations of how the gate closes in different scenarios.

Business buyers: early childhood education, K–12 basic education
Hot sale details: Indoor trampolines are mainly used to meet children's indoor exercise needs. It can be applied in settings such as home education and K-12 basic education. Safety is a key consideration. For trampolines designed for children, be sure to add an outer safety net to improve product safety.

Business buyers: K-12 education, higher education
Hot-selling details: These products are suitable for creating printed models and are used with 3D printers and 3D pens. They are used especially often in higher education and research institutions, and because they are consumables, they need to be purchased repeatedly and in large quantities.

Business buyers: K-12 education, higher education, and adult education
Hot-selling details:Can be used to heat-press designs onto T-shirts, hats, cups, and other products, and is especially widely used when distributing souvenirs and event supplies at universities.

Business buyers: K-12 education, higher education, adult education
Hot-selling details: widely used across many campus scenarios, including printing learning materials, paper notices, and school administration. When purchasing, buyers pay more attention to whether products such as cartridges/toner are included at the same time, how many documents can be printed with the original product, whether it is easy to add ink/replace cartridges, etc.

Business buyers: K-12 basic education, higher education, adult education
Hot-selling details: Used with printers, when selling, remind buyers of product specifications such as compatible toner models, print colors, printable page yield, and toner capacity.

Business buyers: K-12 basic education, higher education, adult education
Hot-selling details: Used with toner, buyers usually focus on how to install and use the ink cartridge and whether refilling is easy and convenient, so we recommend clearly stating whether it supports repeated use and the addition of toner in different colors.

Business buyers: K-12 basic education, higher education, adult education
Hot sale details:A smartphone tripod with an LED light can take photos and videos at the same time, helping stabilize teaching videos. And the LED light is USB-powered, making it easy to use various power sources; with the included remote control, you can flexibly adjust the lighting based on the shooting location.

Business buyers: K-12 basic education, higher education, adult education
Hot-selling details: Webcams frequently appear in scenarios such as students taking online classes and video conferences at higher education institutions. During at-home learning, many courses in Japanese secondary educational institutions are conducted online, and webcams, as video signal capture devices, are essential for educational institutions, whether they are provided to students, staff, or teachers.

Business buyers: K-12 education, higher education, and adult education
Hot seller details: Watches and wristbands are frequently seen in sports settings such as outdoor hiking, running, and working out at the gym. Since they need to be used with devices such as smartphones and tablets, products that are compatible with most devices and systems are more favored. Buyers also pay attention to how comfortable and convenient these products are to wear when purchasing.

Business buyers: K-12 basic education, higher education
Hot-selling insights: Many students choose to commute around campus by bicycle, so bicycles and related accessories will be potentially hot-selling categories in the future. When selecting products, pay attention to factors such as the product’s use scenarios, level of specialization, safety, and whether it is lightweight.

Business buyers: K-12 education, higher education
Hot-selling item details: Almost all overseas educational institutions have gyms, and this type of exercise bike is one of the basic fitness equipment items that gyms on campus and some companies need to have. Some consumers who want to exercise during the pandemic will also choose to buy products that make it easy to work out at home. Therefore, demand is relatively high in both the business market and the consumer market.

Business buyers: K–12 education, higher education, and adult education
Hot-selling details: As the impact of the pandemic gradually fades, especially as winter begins, students returning to their normal routines often use these antifreeze gloves for outdoor activities such as skiing and cycling, so demand is strong. For these products, buyers place more importance on practical features such as durability, waterproofing, and warmth.

Product selection compliance tips alone are not enough—Amazon Business operational tips are included, too!How can you quickly break into the school supplies category in 2020?Twelve super-detailed questions, answered one by one for you!

1) Research:conduct research and data analysis for selling on Amazon in advance so you can more accurately choose suitable products and marketplaces to expand into;
2) Authorization: Do not sell unauthorized products;
3) Compatibility: Compatible products are in high demand;
4) Environmental friendliness: the more environmentally friendly the materials used in the product and outer packaging are, the more popular they will be;
5) Size: Understand Amazon FBA size limits and the popular sizes and models on the market.

❓ Q2 What are the pitfalls that must be avoided to expand this category?

1) Seasonality: School supplies have a peak sales season, and sending too much inventory to overseas warehouses all at once at the start can lead to overstock and other issues. Stock up early before peak season to avoid disrupting your operations rhythm;
2) Safety: If the product is intended for use by young children, it is best to conduct safety testing to prevent a series of product issues later;
3) Compliance: Pay attention to the product's appearance and patterns to avoid complaints about IP-infringing products. The Europe marketplace also needs to pay attention to VAT compliance issues;
4) Accuracy: Carefully compare the product image colors, product descriptions, and instructions to avoid negative reviews caused by inconsistencies between images and text.

❓ Q3 What are the use cases for overseas business buyers?How often do they buy?

Usage scenarios: school teaching and office work, class activities, teacher-student interaction, holiday decorations, and similar scenarios;
Purchase frequency: Purchases occur throughout the year, with higher purchase frequency during the September back-to-school season and at the end of the year.

❓ Q4 What are the main needs of overseas buyers?Do you have preferences for brand, functionality, design, materials, etc.?

Choose appropriate packaging methods and support self-validation processes such as drop testing to minimize shipping damage caused by logistics. For storage battery products, they must pass all required qualification tests for ocean shipping, and the packaging quality must be compliant to avoid lithium battery explosions.

❓ Q5 Calendar of major sales events for this category across marketplaces?Are there any suitable promotions?

Including the traditional peak sales season in Europe and the US from October to December (Black Friday, Halloween, Christmas, etc.), below are the peak sales periods for school supplies. The back-to-school season campaign mainly targets business buyers in the education sector, including 1) K-12 educational institutions; 2) school teachers and procurement staff; and 3) school product suppliers.

1) Try to choose factories with strong supply capacity so you can effectively secure product inventory, especially during peak seasons;
2) It’s best to have a relevant design team or staff who can promptly update products after analyzing buyer feedback;
3) Factories must have ISO certification, factory inspection reports, and other relevant qualifications to help provide documentation support to businesses during procurement;
4) For school supplies, product innovation capability is very important, especially when it comes to product personalization and customization, so manufacturers that own their own factories have a greater advantage.

❓ Q7 Does this category have special patent requirements?What should a selling partner pay attention to?

We recommend that sellers pay attention to the patent status of best-selling products already on the market to avoid unknowingly infringing on others’ patents, such as the design patents of major brands. Also, make sure products do not have sharp corners or similar issues that could cause injury to users.

1) FBA generally works; be sure to control the package size so the product stays within Amazon’s required sortable size limits;
2) Learning and stationery products, such as pens and rulers, may be eligible for the Small and Light program to save costs;
3) US Customs sometimes requires an SDS shipping acceptance document, so you need to prepare it in advance;
4) Make sure labels for children’s toy products include the brand trademark, product information, production date, FUSKU barcode, UPC code, and warning language indicating that children under X years old must not use the product, along with a warning symbol; warning statements vary by product;
5) For listing cadence, you can start by shipping small batches to test the product, then replenish inventory later, while also improving the product based on buyer feedback;
6) Ship and list according to your actual operating strategy, but avoid shipping too much at one time; you can send 2–3 batches in advance for testing.

1) For children’s products, clearly indicate the applicable age range and warning labels;
2) When editing product descriptions, try to highlight the product’s usage scenarios to attract buyers more effectively;
3) Analyze your product buyers. Products such as whiteboards are better suited to Business-to-Consumer buyers, so you can sell them in bundles with bulk discounts to help increase sales.
4) When creating Listings for similar consumable products, make sure the order is consistent. For example, if the first product emphasizes the model, then the color, and then the capacity, we recommend following this order for all similar Listings.

Product compliance policies are a red line that sellers must pay close attention to when selling on Amazon. Sellers are responsible for complying with relevant local laws and Amazon policies when selling school supplies. For details, please open the corresponding link to check the specific regulations:

Toys intended for children ages 12 and under must meet federal safety standards👇🏻
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/V9VZ5A7PJZQYRFF
Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) choking hazard warnings and material content limits👇🏻
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/200292910

Potentially regulated dangerous goods (hazardous materials), such as pencils, toner, and ink cartridges 👇🏻
https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/200525640
Dangerous Goods Identification Guide 👇🏻
https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/201003400?ref=ag_201003400_shel_xx

Regulations related to the Japan Toy Association 👇🏻
https://www.toys.or.jp/
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare regulations 👇🏻
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/english/

At the same time, Amazon may require you at any time to provide safety documentation proving that your products have passed testing and comply with standards or regulations. For details, please copy the corresponding link into your browser to check the specific certification requirements:

Go to the United States marketplace Seller Central help page for details about safety documents 👇🏻
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/help-page.html?itemID=XMGGPL6LC4CVXHT
Amazon may require the following documentation to confirm compliance:
Safety documents for children's learning products 👇🏻
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/XT3EFQS54LRKYM3
Children's jewelry safety documents 👇🏻
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/T3XLUHYCWPM3THX
Additionally, products with batteries require a UN38.3 certificate 👇🏻
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/learn/courses?ref_=selleru_athena_c109_m2dd13413-5dad-4115-9852-6410d1240b81&courseId=109&moduleId=2dd13413-5dad-4115-9852-6410d1240b81&modLanguage=English&contentType=VIDEO

Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) dangerous goods (hazmat) review process and the required information for products classified as regulated dangerous goods 👇🏻
https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/201749580

For some specific products, please check the detailed sales requirements:
Outdoor game equipment 👇🏻
https://sellercentral-japan.amazon.com/gp/help/help.html?itemID=3M3CV6DMGCLDCGR
Toy combinations👇🏻
https://sellercentral-japan.amazon.com/gp/help/help.html?itemID=ZH3YZUQDTU9XY4Z
Invisible ink pen 👇🏻
https://sellercentral-japan.amazon.com/gp/help/help.html?itemID=2D2BL839NUB5QTK
Magnetic building block tiles👇🏻
https://sellercentral-japan.amazon.com/gp/help/help.html?itemID=ZHMAZAQU5H54P9Z

With the new school term and return to classes now underway, a large number of orders for school and office supplies are about to come in!Do your market research early, optimize your product selection, and improve your follow-up services, and your products could become Best Sellers trusted by businesses and educational institutions overseas!Act fast to capture the back-to-school purchasing boom, and join Amazon Business to tap into overseas opportunities!