Battle of the bargains

Amazon vs Temu: Who wins the price duel?

Amazon is launching an attack on Temu with its own low-cost store.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Amazon, Temu)

What's better than cheap? Correct: even cheaper. The Chinese online marketplace Temu has led the way and taken the hearts and, above all, wallets of millions of people around the world by storm. Now Amazon is following suit with its own offer and "insanely low prices". Can the top dog be successful with this?

Initial reports that Amazon could launch a counter-attack on Temu, Shein and other Chinese providers with a new store for affordable mass-produced goods were already making the rounds in July. Insiders reported on a clandestine meeting between the US retail giant and retailers in China, during which the first screenshots of the ominous low-cost store made the rounds. They show a massage gun, dumbbells, cell phone cases and other no-name trinkets at prices below 20 US dollars. The plans are already well advanced, it was said. The aim is to launch in the fall - Krone+ reported.

Amazon itself did not want to deny or confirm the reports at the time. The online retailer's official, rather vague statement was that it was "always looking for new ways to work with our sales partners to delight our customers with more choice, lower prices and more convenience". Four months later, the retailer is finally getting down to business and presenting its answer to the low-cost competition from the Far East: "Haul".