Featured Listing: PPE & Medical Amazon FBA Brand

About the business

Tell us a little about yourself. What’s your background? How did you start the business?

My name is Kevin Perez. I am an eCommerce Entrepreneur and Digital Marketing, Professional. I first started my path toward selling on Amazon in July 2016. I was working as a Landscape Designer at a world-renowned architecture firm that I was hired at straight out of college. I had a 2-hour commute to and from work so I began filling my time in the car by listening to podcasts. Through serendipity, I found the AM/PM Podcast with Manny Coats and The Amazing Seller Podcast with Scott Voelker. My commute became my college and the steppingstone to my eCommerce career. By the end of 2016, I had launched my first Amazon FBA brand selling resistance bands in the powerlifting niche. The brand became a highly successful brand and was acquired and grown by a private buyer.

As an eCommerce business, where are your products made?

I source all my products for SafetyMates in China. I find that Alibaba.com is the most efficient way of connecting with great suppliers while being able to process safe transactions. SafetyMates currently has 1 main supplier and 1 backup supplier in China. Both of the suppliers are fast and efficient in getting quotes, improving the product, providing solutions to problems, and forwarding freight at discounted FOB prices.

How have you marketed the product and where are your customers originating from?

100% of sales derive from the Amazon platform. 75% of all sales are from organic traffic and the remaining 25% are from Amazon PPC. A small percentage of sales are filtered through SafetyMates.com into the SafetyMates Storefront on Amazon. The website funnel is expected to grow from organic traffic using SEO and SEM campaigns.

Is the asset on your listing owner-operated, how much time does it take to run the business, who else is needed on the team, and what is automated?

The business is 99% automated and 1% owner-operated. The time required to run the business in its current state is only 1-hour per week. All sales, returns, refunds, review requests, etc. are fulfilled/automated by Amazon. The owner operations include ordering inventory and shipping it to the FBA warehouse 2-4 times a year. The business can be operated by 1 person.

What does someone need to do to continue operating the business in its current form?

The business in its current form does not require much time or effort. A normal day consists of checking your sales, inventory levels, and ad budgets. You will have to replenish inventory about 2-4 times a year.

Growing the business

Can you list a few opportunities for a potential new owner to continue growing the business?

Yes! SafetyMates has laid the foundation for growing a successful PPE/Safety/School Supply Business tailored around children, parents, and teachers. If I were to continue growing SafetyMates the first thing I would do is source a niche mask like a K95 or n94 mask which has lower competition than regular disposable masks or reusable masks. I would then expand the current website and take advantage of Google SEO and SEM to grow external traffic and sales. Expansion on social media would be a huge opportunity for the brand using a channel like Pinterest in particular.

What has been the evolution of this asset since its launch?

Creating a product in the children’s PPE niche during the pandemic was a clear goal for SafetyMates. We began with 2 designs and saw the need for differentiation in the market for designs that were tailored to children’s favourite themes like dinosaurs, outer space, and unicorns. Today we have 33 unique designs and colours and 11 SKUs as bundles on Amazon. Growth has been great for this niche PPE item.

How does this business make money? What are the current revenue streams?

100% Amazon Sales.

What marketing channels are most profitable for the business?

Amazon Advertising is the only traffic we have used to capture sales, but we see potential in expanding the SafetyMates.com website and expanding to Pinterest Advertising.

How does the business currently acquire customers and what is your breakdown for marketing costs?

All customers are acquired through existing Amazon traffic. The average advertising cost for sponsored ads runs about $1290 per month but that is totally up to me as the seller and manager of SafetyMates. I could increase my ad budget or decrease it based on the performance of the campaign. Currently, I am running 80% sponsored products, 10% sponsored brands, and 10% sponsored display advertisements.

How big is your current team? How many people does it take to run this business?

I am the sole owner of SafetyMates and it only takes me to run the full operation. Anyone can run and manage this account with minor onboarding.

What’s the reason for selling your business on Flippa?

I am selling SafetyMates as an opportunity to fund, grow, and expand my Amazon Product Photography business. I expect to provide services to new and established Amazon FBA entrepreneurs. Although I am sad to see SafetyMates go, I am excited to see its growth potential with its new owner.