Zhejiang is one of the gathering places of China's commercial kitchen industry. The Magic River was born here in the 90s of the last century. Relying on supplying well-known domestic milk tea chains and other customers, and expanding foreign trade channels in the Middle East and Southeast Asia, Majiang's offline sales volume exceeds 200 million yuan per year, ranking in the top ten in the industry.
In 2021, a “black swan” incident swept the world, causing Magic River's sales to bottom in 2021. In order to survive, on the one hand, Majiang received orders from leading domestic catering companies by developing a new generation of intelligent products; on the other hand, Majiang also saw a cross-border circuit with great potential for growth. Through the DTB (direct-to-buyer) model purchased by Amazon companies, it quickly gained another sales growth engine other than traditional foreign trade channels.

Alex said, “In 2022, we cooperated with some major domestic cross-border sellers to help them make branded commercial catering equipment as foundries. The business grew very rapidly, reaching tens of millions in '22. However, compared to simple OEM, the profit of cross-border e-commerce is 2-3 times higher. Then we thought, since we can OEM for others, why can't we start this business ourselves?"

In 2023, Magic River officially began entering Amazon. In just 9 months, sales in the US surpassed 1 million US dollars and ranked in the top ten in the US category of ice cream machines.
According to Alex, the transformation of foreign trade factories into cross-border e-commerce has three unique advantages:
1. Zhejiang is one of the gathering places for commercial kitchen equipment. It has a good industrial foundation. It can find supply chain partners such as molds, injection molding, and refrigeration at a lower cost, making it easy for Majiang to explore vertical fields and enhance its core competitiveness.
2. As a factory-type seller, Majiang has accumulated rich experience in foundry in the early stages. Using the advantages of cross-border e-commerce to face consumers, it can quickly grasp changes in overseas demand and make flexible adjustments using the advantages of the manufacturing process. In particular, after introducing a series of digital devices and software, Magic River can meet the individual needs of customers in a more flexible manner in a timely manner.
3. The full chain layout of factory sellers is more conducive to controlling costs and finding a “balance point” between cost and quality. For example, Alex mentioned, “We will design products based on truly understanding the needs of users, eliminate useless configurations, and maximize cost performance. At the same time, the form of cross-border e-commerce can also help us skip intermediaries and save more profit and invest in improving product quality. 」

Starting from details, providing the ultimate experience for overseas users
Product adjustments don't mean that the more advanced the better; sometimes we need to pay more attention to details and the user experience. For example, American users are generally strong. In the past, handles were easily damaged, causing customer complaints, so we immediately changed to stronger and wear-resistant materials, while optimizing the design to improve grip, which greatly improved customer satisfaction.
Alex said, “We believe that all cross-border e-commerce will eventually return to the supply chain, which is the advantage of factories. Sellers who only sell don't know the industry as well as us, and are not as good as us in terms of technical support, after-sales service, cost control, etc., so we believe that in the end, cross-border e-commerce is still the supply chain, and factory sellers will have an advantage in the future. "

When it comes to choosing cross-border channels, Magic has chosen Amazon from the beginning. First, it values Amazon's huge size, and second, Amazon has perfect operating facilities and resource layout in the US, Europe, Japan, etc. However, compared to traditional foreign trade, cross-border e-commerce requires sellers to have a full range of operational capabilities. To this end, Majiang has also made thorough preparations, such as cooperating with professional consulting firms to complete early product certification, etc. Even so, Magic River also encountered some unexpected problems in the early days of settling in.

1. In terms of stocking, due to lack of experience in the early stages and insufficient stocking, it was soon out of stock after a period of launch, and an important sales point was missed. After a period of exploration, we gradually figured out Amazon's off-peak season plan. We can choose the best storage and logistics strategies based on sales data and Amazon inventory data during the peak season, and quickly replenish goods according to sales conditions.
2. In terms of logistics, we are unable to use FBA due to the size and weight of the goods, which has led to some pitfalls in the logistics transportation process, such as violent transportation such as dumping and heavy pressure. We examined and selected a more suitable logistics company, and also optimized the packaging design and used stronger packaging such as wooden boxes to prevent damage during transportation.
3. In terms of after-sales service, our initial return rate was as high as 20%, but mostly because we couldn't read the instructions, and our products are durable equipment, and we need to resolve issues such as maintenance and replacement in a timely manner to gain the trust of customers. For example, we will open overseas after-sales warehouses to reduce refunds by directly exchanging goods for customers, etc., and even returned machines can be processed nearby, making it easy to sell twice. In addition, we also pay great attention to details such as optimizing instructions, and also produce simple and easy-to-understand operation process instructions such as videos and pictures. Through these methods, the return rate was reduced from the initial 20% to between 5% and 8%.

The construction of after-sales, logistics and after-sales systems has been solved, and Majiang has done the preliminary work of take-off. The next step is to find the direction of product selection. Alex said, “In terms of research and development, we read buyers' voices, buyers' reviews, and third-party plug-ins that can collect reviews almost every day to gain insight into customer pain points, then redesign the factory's existing products and optimize functions in combination with the company's R&D resources accumulated over decades to find a new product suitable for us. 」

Use reviews to guide R&D and promote continuous product optimization
For example, there are different models of snow melting machines with a cylinder capacity of 5, 10, and 15 liters. We found from competitive reviews that most customers mentioned that the 12 liter capacity is too small. 2*15 liters is a more cost-effective choice, suitable not only for business scenarios such as bars and restaurants, but also for slightly larger home use scenarios. Currently, this product sells 200-300 units per month, with cumulative sales of 400,000 US dollars over 9 months, making it the best-selling model in Majiang.

In this process, the business opportunity detector is also a tool often used by the Magic River. Alex said that through this tool, you can see a summary of competitors' buyer review insights. In particular, negative feedback classifies the proportion of problems in every aspect. Among them, the biggest share of negative feedback on ice machines is that they stop working and do not cool down after a period of use. We focus on checking the points where refrigerant leaks easily and simulate usage scenarios over a long period of time to eliminate these problems.
Currently, Magic River has about 15 SKUs, maintaining the rhythm of launching a new product every 3 months. However, as a product with extremely B-side attributes, Majiang has also accumulated its own set of methodologies on how to achieve a quick cold start for new products in the early stages of entry.

Complete these four steps to achieve both volume and sales growth!
1. High customer unit price products can attract and gain popularity through large-scale promotions, laying the foundation for subsequent growth. We use tools such as Best Deal (Best Deal) and Lightning Deal (Lighting Deal) coupons, and sometimes we can double our sales volume. Among them, the summer Prime membership day happens to be the peak sales season, so we pay special attention to this big promotion point. Through promotional tools such as members-only discounts, and an adequate budget for brand promotion, display promotion, video advertising, etc., we can achieve a 3-4 times increase in sales, and sales can exceed 30,000 US dollars a day.
2. In terms of advertising, we will target specific scenarios and groups of people through user portraits of B2B enterprise customers given by Amazon, so that advertisements can be promoted more accurately to target audiences. For example, we will add essential keywords such as commercial to advertisements for B-side products, so we can filter out a large number of useful advertising audiences.
3. In the listing design, we will focus on showing scenario-based images of hotels, restaurants, etc., so that customers have a more similar sense of engagement. At the same time, we will also display our factory and upload some NSF certified photos, etc., so that overseas business customers feel that we are a trustworthy Chinese company and increase sales conversion rates.
4. When it comes to durable products, the quality of reviews is more important than quantity. Therefore, when our new products are launched, we will use the Amazon Vine Program to accumulate the first batch of customer reviews, which is critical to the initial stage of high-customer unit price products. Moreover, through competition products and own user reviews, Magic River can explore some directions of product transformation.

After achieving steady development in the US, Majiang soon formulated plans for itself to develop new sites in Europe, Australia, etc. On the basis of following these methods and principles, it selected 3-4 products, sent 20-30 units each time for small-batch testing, and achieved steady expansion step by step.

Unlike many cross-border sellers targeting Amazon's hundreds of millions of consumers, as a commercial kitchen equipment company with extremely B-side attributes, Majiang initially targeted DTB opportunities. On the first day of Amazon's launch, it launched corporate purchases, and the first order it received was also from overseas corporate buyers.
Alex: “The potential business opportunities of buying at Amazon Businesses were also unimaginable before. In less than a year, Majiang's corporate purchase orders already accounted for 25% of Amazon's total sales, and received 10 large orders worth more than 5,000 US dollars. The largest order reached more than 10,000 US dollars. Furthermore, many small catering companies are also buying ice making equipment from Majiang as consumers on Amazon. According to our estimates, about 70% of Amazon's sales come from small to medium business customers such as small restaurants and convenience stores, and the remaining 30% comes from individual consumers. They like to have parties at home or have relatively large family kitchens, which has enabled us to achieve diverse layouts and simultaneous growth on the B-side and C-side. "

According to Alex, Amazon corporate purchases have brought many convenience and advantages to Majiang's operations, and have accelerated the growth of Majiang's cross-border business. The core can be summarized in the following three points:

01 B-side customers who buy from the enterprise have a higher repurchase rate, a lower return rate, and are relatively insensitive to prices. For example, Majiang's B-side repurchase rate is 10%, and the return rate is 5%, while the C-side repurchase rate is 5.9%, and the return rate is 8%, allowing Magjiang to quickly build up a group of highly loyal overseas customers.

02 Enterprise Purchasing can provide Majiang with B-side sales analysis and user profile data, more accurately identify the procurement preferences of overseas catering companies, and then adjust and optimize product selection in a more targeted manner. In Amazon's seller platform, sellers can easily obtain data reports on dimensions such as overall sales data on the B-side, the industry type and sales volume of B2B buyers, and recommendations of popular B2B products in stores, so as to adjust and optimize their own sales strategies. For example, through the sales volume of products purchased by the company, Majiang discovered that a three-cylinder snow melting machine sold particularly well, so Majiang launched a different shape for this product, further increasing product sales.

03 In response to the traditional “ship first, pay later” transaction model in foreign trade, as well as various problems such as unstable orders and skip orders, Amazon's endorsement and online transaction processes have also effectively improved the security of operations, making it easier to establish trust between Magjiang and customers.

Summarizing the specific practice of using Amazon Business Purchases, Alex believes that “business price and quantity discounts” (hereinafter: BPQD) is an essential tool. Alex mentioned, “Magic River provides business-only offers for the price and quantity discounts set for the B-side. By setting up BPQD, it is possible to effectively increase the number of views of corporate buyers on products, enhance the purchasing intention of enterprise customers; and obtain a large number of new corporate customers, eliminating a large number of advertising and distribution costs. It's a very useful B2B tool. 」

On how to use BPQD, Majiang also shared his own tips.
Alex said, “For high-customer unit price products, BPQD can be combined with coupons (Coupons) promotion tools to give business users maximum concessions through a “discount” method, increase sales while saving advertising costs, and meet more new customers. When setting quantity discounts, consider different factors such as logistics and advertising, and set more reasonable discounts to help maximize profits. For example, Magic River will set the maximum discount on quantity to buy 6 units and enjoy a 6% discount. This is because considering truck capacity, 6 devices can be transported at once, while overseas, logistics often accounts for a large share of the overall cost. "

Enterprise Price and Quantity Discounting (BPQD) usage path
● Individual ASIN settings: Seller Central > Inventory Management > Business Price/Add Quantity Discounts
● Bulk ASIN Setup: Seller Central > Determine Price > Automate Pricing > Create a New Pricing Rule
● Automatic Business Discount Analysis: Seller Central > B2B > Business Discount Analysis

After Amazon achieved steady growth in the US site, Magic River also began to set its sights on more global sites. Alex said, “I learned that Amazon has 6 million institutional buyers, spread across 10 major sites including the US, Europe, and Japan. This massive demand is something I never dared to think about using offline channels before. ” Facing the future, on the one hand, Magic River will unlock business opportunities of exponential growth by extending the product line and laying out new sites in Europe and Australia; on the other hand, it will also continue to invest in brand building, build brand awareness in the minds of customers on the basis of making high-quality products in the early stages, and drive long-term, stable, and sustainable profit growth through the high premium brought by the brand.