Why Do Amazon Sellers Have Such Strange Brand Names?

Once you get past the big brand names on Amazon, have you ever noticed those really weird ones that start to pop up instead? Some look like typos. Others like wild mashups of recognizable words that rarely have anything to do with the product itself. And yet, no matter how bizarre they get, these fake-sounding brands continue to rank highly among Amazon's search results across the board.

These weird names are thanks in large part to the thorny issue of trademark. Since 2017, Amazon has required sellers to hold a registered or pending U.S. trademark to access their Brand Registry: a program that gives sellers tools to fight counterfeits and improve their product listings. But obtaining a trademark in the United States is notorious for being slow and picky.

Applications can be rejected for being too similar to an existing mark, for being too descriptive, and a whole slew of other excuses. A smart way to speed things up? Come up with a gibberish, nondescript name that no one else could ever come up with and couldn't possibly conflict with other trademarks.

Beyond trademark, more than half of Amazon's top sellers are based in manufacturing hubs in Asia. Many of those top sellers are also factory-direct, which means that the same people making the product are also responsible for listing and selling it on Amazon. Instead of going through the slow (not to mention expensive) process of building an internationally recognized brand American retailers would stock, these sellers use Amazon to their advantage: price it lower, ship it faster, and rack up the most five-star ratings. Then, people eager to use the perks of their Amazon Prime subscription will take it from there.

Unlike a brick-and-mortar retailer, where only brands with a recognizable name or budding reputation are going to earn a spot on the shelves, Amazon promotes a different approach. As long as you meet its standards, you can sell a product on the site. And let's be honest, the goal is to save money when shopping on Amazon. So, if a set of gloves has hundreds of positive reviews and is eligible to ship fast and free with Amazon Prime, shoppers might not care as much about who made the product.

At first glance, you might ask yourself, "Who would buy this stuff? Doesn't it seem shady?" — But their Amazon sales numbers show that plenty of people have bought from these sellers without major issues. These strange-sounding brands are able to succeed because Amazon has completely changed the shopping experience. In person, you're probably going to choose the product from the brand name you know or trust. Online, shoppers are likely just looking for the fastest shipping at the best price with enough good reviews to not seem like a scam.

The way things are going, don't expect to see these strange brand names disappear anytime soon. The strategy is working well for the sellers because they're moving tons of product. It's working well for Amazon because they're getting tons of revenue from those transactions. And it's working well for the shoppers themselves, because they're getting exactly what they wanted: A random product at a good price that will be on their doorstep as early as the very next morning.

Nevertheless, if you aren't sure about trusting this brand or that brand, do what other Amazon shoppers have done: Check the reviews, use your discretion to spot any warning signs an online seller is scamming you, and decide from there.