Accused of selling inauthentic item by a competitor

dignatov · #1 05-31-2018

OK guys, here is the story.

I am selling seller fulfilled on Amazon and I found this worldwide famous supplement which is very cheap in Bulgaria as it is sold by those TV shops at very low prices.

So, I have uploaded it did a lot of orders as I was having cheapest price and then, BOOM, got letter on my email by Amazon that I am selling counterfeit and the company "that has the rights" reported me.

Have held investigation and found out that the company that reported has nothing to do with the manufacturer itself. It is just an US import / export company that got ballistic that my items sell a lot, but it is not my fault I just found great price.

Moreover I wrote to those guys asking what is their problem, but they never replied, which, once again, made me think they are nothing, but just envy competitors.

Unfortunately for now Amazon are refusing to unblock my listing although I have sent them invoice from the official retailer, however it was in Bulgarian, although the product name was clearly written in English.

What would be your advise in that case, should I continue the fight to get the listing unblocked and in general what should I do when clearly reported by competitor and not really by the company itself?

Thanks!

Edit: Is there an issue I was selling under the ASIN number I found on Amazon for this product? If I start selling it again with my own UPC code could Amazon delete the listing again?

elmo · #2 05-31-2018

If the supp you are selling is not from a legit source, then you will always run into these issues. If its from a legit source, then providing authentic invoices should not be an issue.

On new stores you can get flagged for this reason, so its not recommended to be selling higher risk products on a store without much history.

You can also get flagged if you have aggressive competitors in the same niche. This is occurring much more frequently today than before as I'm guessing sellers are spamming the amazon support lines with these claims (using many stores to do so).

applebaum · #3 05-31-2018

Were you selling on Amazon.com or Amazon in Bulgaria? If it is Amazon.com and your invoices were in Bulgarian, I would suggest that you have them officially translated by a certified translator and provide that information to Amazon.

RustyShackelford · #4 06-01-2018

If youre selling in Amazon.com, you may have received a complaint from the official distributor for the US. So if they have exclusive distribution rights for the US, and you sell the items you bought in Bulgaria, even though its legit, they have a legit right to have you removed, I would investigate and see who they really are.

rsot · #5 06-01-2018

Tough fight OP but continue it - submit all your proof, continue investigations, it could take sometime but use your discretion on if it's worth your time...

user3657 · #6 06-01-2018

Were you selling a brand name? Or you were selling your own brand? Or was it generic?

dorourke · #7 06-01-2018

Anyone had luck creating invoices for yourself? I am having a similar issue but the product and brand are on my private label. So I was thinking I could write an invoice from my LLC to my LLC since my LLC is listed as the manufacturer on my listing. I did something similar a few years back in the same situation and it worked. Just not sure if it would still work. Any thoughts?

RustyShackelford · #8 06-01-2018

Quote:

Originally Posted by dorourke

Anyone had luck creating invoices for yourself? I am having a similar issue but the product and brand are on my private label. So I was thinking I could write an invoice from my LLC to my LLC since my LLC is listed as the manufacturer on my listing. I did something similar a few years back in the same situation and it worked. Just not sure if it would still work. Any thoughts?

Only one way to find out, what used to work doesnt always, but if you hit a snag, explain you are the manufacturer, and they will tell you what they need.

dignatov · #9 06-01-2018

Quote:

Originally Posted by applebaum

Were you selling on Amazon.com or Amazon in Bulgaria? If it is Amazon.com and your invoices were in Bulgarian, I would suggest that you have them officially translated by a certified translator and provide that information to Amazon.

I was selling on Amazon.com, there is no Amazon in Bulgaria. Indeed the option for a certified translator is a good idea.

Quote:

Originally Posted by RustyShackelford

If youre selling in Amazon.com, you may have received a complaint from the official distributor for the US. So if they have exclusive distribution rights for the US, and you sell the items you bought in Bulgaria, even though its legit, they have a legit right to have you removed, I would investigate and see who they really are.

Pretty sure those guys have nothing to do with the rights of this product. They import it and that's all. I have seen their website and it is ridiculous. The fact they are not replying to my messages shows once again that they do not have valid rights, just playing dirty.

Quote:

Originally Posted by user3657

Were you selling a brand name? Or you were selling your own brand? Or was it generic?

It is generic name, there is no issue to sell it.