With competition increasing on all sides, eBay ventured into more traditional online retail sectors Monday by launching its new eBay Express store.
Dispensing with the auction metaphor entirely, eBay Express encourages customers to shop for items in an online store, then place them in a virtual shopping cart and eventually pay for an entire selection of purchases at once—a model traditionally associated more with Amazon.com and other e-tailers than with eBay.
eBay Express is innovative, however, in that it leverages eBay's massive existing auction listings business. Items to be found for for sale on eBay express are automatically complied from fixed-price eBay item listings posted by high-feedback sellers. eBay Express therefore boasts an instant inventory of millions of items while serving a new customer base—shoppers interested in one-click buying convenience who have previously found eBay to be inconvenient in comparison to traditional online retailers.
Ultimately eBay express appears to be yet another step in eBay's attempt to diversify its portfolio of offerings and move away from complete reliance on the auction listings business model.
eBay sellers interesting in selling on eBay Express should visit Grow Your Business on eBay Express for details.
