I’m sorry for the late reporting, but I thought you would be interested in learning more about Amazon’s new country of origin (COO) policy that went into effect earlier this year.
I know that I’m not alone in wanting to know where tools are made. Amazon product listings often include country of origin details in their product information and technical details section, but there are times when COO is missing.
While I don’t have an active seller account, I continue to get Amazon vendor and seller news on occasion. Here’s an announcement email they sent me regarding new COO disclosure requirements:
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Country of Origin (COO) New Mandatory Catalog Attribute
From January 4, 2021, you will be required to provide Country of Origin (COO) data in order to list products to sell on Amazon.
The COO of a product is the country where the product was produced or manufactured. If more than one country is involved in the product’s production or manufacture, the country of origin is where the last “substantial transformation” of the product occurred. Country of Origin is required at an individual marketplace level when adding products.
‘Substantial transformation’ is when the raw materials lose their original identity and become a new product (for example, a cake, where the correct country of origin is where the cake was baked, not where each individual ingredient was sourced).
Country of Origin (COO) rules require businesses to prove where their goods originated from in order to clear customs.
This is the important takeaway: Country of Origin is required at an individual marketplace level when adding products.
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Sure enough, when I look at newer tool listings on Amazon, they all mention the country of origin.
Amazon has been fairly consistent with COO details, at least in recent years, and this new policy makes it mandatory for sellers that create new product listings. I would presume a similar policy was previously implemented for products sold by Amazon directly.
Hopefully other online retailers follow suit.
Hon Cho
I do my best not to spend money with Amazon but this is a good thing. Country of Origin is important as I sincerely believe where the money we spend goes is as important as the people we vote for in elections.
Unfortunately, the skeptical me doesn’t think Amazon will do a good job enforcing this. They do a pretty poor job preventing counterfeit and unsafe products from being listed.
Robm
I Agree 100%
Chris I
I’m with you. To be honest, knowing everything we know about Amazon’s business practices, anyone spending money with Amazon doesn’t give a sh*t about COO. If you cared about that at all you wouldn’t be buying from Amazon in the first place
DAVID
Amazon is the new Walmart. The same things were said about WM until Amazon became the new bogey. I buy from Amazon and I do care about COO. Just like I buy from countless other vendors. I don’t see the connection trying to be made here. COO is a market/profit driven force bigger even than Amazon (or Walmart).
John
Yeah, I like the idea but even if everyone had the best of intentions most of amazon’s listings are put in automatically without a human being involved. When you add in all the unscrupulous sellers and the fact that amazon doesn’t care about accuracy there’s no way this will be meaningful.
Gordon
Amazon needs to address the manipulative listings first. It seems common to see listings that are for one thing, with hundreds or thousands of reviews for a completely different product. In those cases the COO could be for something completely different than what you’re trying to buy.
A great idea in theory, but I have little faith in it actually affecting anything other than large brands that have something to lose.
Frank D
Just report the listing, or engage a representative via support chat.
Sellers can and will get banned for cheating.
Serendipity
Only if they are selling a product that competes with Amazon basics, because Amazon doesn’t want competition for products they steal the design for and then undercut the original producer.
Bob
This is entirely not true! I work for a very large seller of licensed merc, a VAST majority of our sales are amazon. On a regular bases we report we report bootleg listings. They take them all seriously.
Brian M
There is no correct information in this post.
There are plenty of competitors to Amazon Basics products on Amazon, you’re literally just lying by inferring anything to the contrary. A simple search of Amazon would disprove that, having competing products on Amazon is literally part of their business model of having everything to buy on Amazon.
Amazon does not steal any design for Amazon Basics; Amazon Basics doesn’t make anything, they are rebranded by the same OEMs that make many of the competitor products. An example, Amazon Basics clamp meter is made by CEM. CEM makes Southwire (And other brand’s meters), that is not stealing.
Franck B
I would guess that Amazon is requiring this just to streamline customs processes (i.e. make it easier for themselves), and no other reason. Also I do not believe the information necessarily makes it to the product listing. I occasionally see the COO field in the product listing, but even with many products that are “First available” in the last couple of months, the COO is not listed.
Plus, hijacking a product listing* is pretty common anyhow and will circumvent this by making a new product available under a listing without the requirement.
Finally a lot of the info is just dead wrong. I’ve seen plenty of known USA-made tools listed as “China”, probably as vandalism by Chinese sellers to lessen the differentiation of products that are similarly priced (look at the flood of RV external power boxes from China, while the US/Mexico-made ones from major US manufacturers are listed as China as well).
*finding an existing product no longer available but with a lot of positive feedback, then modifying the name, pictures and product info to suit your new item
MM
I’m with you on the skepticism. Given the number of obvious errors I see in Amazon listings it seems clear that nobody enforcement of mistakes seems lax.
Jared
I’ve seen lots of errors too. I think it would be nice to be able to search by COO. Even though I am not THAT picky, it would be a handy shortcut to sort through the junk at times.
Jim Felt
“Buyer beware” is still the Golden Rule of shopping. Anywhere.
Amazon literally does not have enough actual product savvy internal staff to even begin to police any questionable listings. The little Dutch boy holding back the leaking dike with his finger has it easy in comparison.
Their employee demographics bear this out as well as the obvious office locations of their product development and oversight teams.
Fortunately their Return Policy is so liberal that literally anything but toothpaste can be instantly returned on their (or their supplier’s) nickel.
Ask me how I know. ;-)~
MoogleMan3
Yep. I know a lot of people shun amazon for whatever reason, but they’ve been great to me over the years and have been a reliable supplier. Their return policy is phenomenal.
bobad
I know. I frequently get items from Amazon that have obviously been opened (maybe even used) and returned. When customers complain about the packaging being opened, they don’t want to hear about it. They just play dumb. That’s fine for a wrench or pliers, but things like a nebulizer or water pic, I don’t appreciate it. So no, I don’t like it when people return good stuff on a whim.
Vards Uzvards
I can’t return a toothpaste?! That’s crossing the line, Amazon! I’m not shopping there anymore!!!
PW
I’m trying to migrate away from Amazon. This COO requirement actually reminds me of a reason why: Amazon sellers lie in their listings, especially about COO! I have seen countless Chinese-made products listed as “USA” over the years.
I’m pretty sure this is just Amazon trying to sluff more liability onto their sellers for customs/legal purposes. Until they get serious about policing fraudulent and deceptive listings this will have minimal use to me.
fred
Amazon’s share of the US e-commerce market reportedly went from about 1/3rd in 2016 to a 2021 position that has them at an estimated 50%. I understand that WalMart and eBay are the next in the rankings – but combined only make up something like 10% of the market share.
Much like Home Depot drove out many small hardware and paint stores and lumberyards – Amazon dominance is also threatening independent sellers.
PW
Yes. That is another reason I am moving away from Amazon.
However, most smaller e-commerce sites don’t list COO either.
Additionally, Amazon often has more information (through user reviews and pictures) than other sites – sometimes it’s helpful to take a look at their listing for an item even if you purchase it elsewhere.
fred
Acme is on e-retailer that more often than not lists the COO under an item’s specifications tab.
But I’ve found that they are not always up to date or correct – and/or the manufacturer has not given them accurate info.
I bought this blade – COO listed as Japan, packing said Philippines:
https://www.acmetools.com/shop/tools/champion-cutting-tool-rzr-9-76-st#specs
That’s probably why Grainger / Zoro – have the caveat that says “COO subject to change” – but they also list Taiwan – with the additional words: “province of China” – perhaps to keep their PRC suppliers happy
Bob Hinden
This is good, but I don’t see it for all tool products. For example this shows a COO
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07QK2PFKY/
but this doesn’t:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0017V7JN2/
Very brief unscientific survey, more don’t than do 🙁
Stuart
The Craftsman set was added to their catalog in 2019, and the Festool bit in 2009.
Jp
They can do what they want. But MFGs have authorized dealers for a reason. I love the convenience of Amazon but I’ve been burned by them too. That being said, I have been burned by local stores as well. Particularly Lowes and Sears.
King duck
While we are on the subject of country of Origin you people who talk about only buying USA made tools realize you are the vegans of the tool world right?
MM
I can’t speak for everyone here, but don’t confuse people wanting to avoid fakes or poor quality tools with people who only want to buy American.
The minority of my toolbox is American. Most of it is Euro and high-end Asian brands (i.e. Japan and Taiwan). It’s not that I only trust American tools–far from it, in many cases I think Euro tools are superior. Rather, it’s that I have generally bad experiences with tools from China, Mexico, and Brazil, so I’d like to know if a product is coming from there so I can take that into account.
fred
The manufacturer that puts its name on a tool may also have some bearing on the quality. I have greater expectations for quality when a known brand stands behind the tool – compared to some generic brand or recently-created name is affixed to the item. I would hope (sometimes proven wrong) that if Bosch, Dewalt or Milwaukee (as examples) put their name on a tool – they are likely to have insisted on some QA/QC being done at the manufacturing plant whether that plant is in Asia, Europe or the Western Hemisphere.
Peter
Fred, you are basically correct. I represent a company that has electronics assemblies built in China. We have our own people on site. They prevent the manufacturer from substituting “just as good as but cheaper parts” all the time. What I saw was that top tier companies have success in manufacturing in China by have HUNDREDS of its own inspectors in the Chinese plants. The insistence on quality must be done at the assembly line. NOT, when the product is opened for inspection at the US warehouse. IMHO, that is why Sony, Panasonic, Bosch etc can have quality products made almost anywhere.
Jim Felt
Not to mention Apple.
MM
That’s the kicker. Fantastic tools are made in China, but in my experience that only happens when there is a big name standing behind the brand. I have no problems with my Dewalt and Milwaukee tools made in China, as there is oversight to ensure quality. But I expect the opposite when it’s a no-name or nonsense sounding brand which are so common on Amazon these days.
Stuart
Is that really necessary?
Maps Bam
It would be even better if Amazon was trustworthy and stopped shipping counterfeit products in place of the originals that you paid for.
Jim Felt
But how does Amazon benefit from this? They pay to ship your fake product (or defective product by any brand) return and certainly carefully monitor how often this happens with all of their outside sellers.
Doesn’t sound like it’s in their best interest to encourage any such behavior.
Unless I’m missing something?
Serendipity
A guy I know would purchase Chinese rifle scopes, knockoff Leopold and zeiss basically, these are actually good quality products since the glass came out of the same factory. He would have a gold ring that fit around the end of the scope, a Leopold identifier, that had “made in USA” printed on it. The ring was made in the US and was legal because it was not permanently attached. His pictures on his ebay listing prominently displayed on “made is USA “.
Jim Felt
That’s an impressive misuse of creativity. What a sleazebag.
Andy
I hear what you’re saying, and don’t necessarily disagree. However, I fully believe that wealth cannot truly be created, just moved around. If someone wants money, they need to take it from someone else. Take this as a lesson that you can’t, and shouldn’t be able, to take someone at their word when you choose to do business with them.
Serendipity
It’s not uncommon though, many times packaging will say made in USA but that’s just the packaging not the product. Car parts are big on this.
Scott ALKB
“Amazon’s New Country of Origin Product Details Requirement” “Aug 7, 2021”
“From January 4, 2021, you will be required to provide Country of Origin (COO) data”
New?
Stuart
Relatively new. Hey, I apologized for the delay in the first paragraph.
Gary Brazzell
Amazon may require the info from suppliers, but they sure don’t share country of origin reliably. I have thousands of free dollars on Amazon, but end up spending real cash elsewhere for office chairs and weights. Amazon makes avoiding Chinese products too hard. It’s time to ask our legislators to update country of origin laws to the digital age. Amazon will not follow the legal standard out of basic decency.