MerchantSpring Marketplace Masters

Agency Best Practice | When To Buy vs Build

As your Amazon agency grows, one question becomes impossible to ignore:Do you build your own analytics infrastructure—or buy a solution?In this episode of Marketplace Masters, Paul Sonneveld sits down with John Aspinall (Velocity Sellers) to break down the real trade-offs behind this critical decision.From messy reporting and scaling data pipelines to rising client expectations, they unpack what actually happens inside agencies as they grow—and why so many internal builds fail to scale.You’ll learn: The tipping point where manual systems stop working  Why AI makes building easier—but not scalable  The hidden complexity behind APIs, data pipelines, and reporting  When building internally actually makes sense  How enterprise clients change your infrastructure requirements  And how to avoid costly “band-aid” solutions One key takeaway: Just because you can build it doesn’t mean you should.If you're running or scaling an Amazon agency, this episode will help you make smarter, more strategic decisions about your tech stack.

Amazon Vendor | Navigating Brand Registry as an Amazon Vendor

How does Brand Registry actually work for Amazon vendors—and why do so many brands still struggle to control listings, content, and brand presence on Vendor Central? In this episode, Paul Sonneveld speaks with Scott Bass, Director of Operations at Ecommerce Intelligence, about how Brand Registry has evolved, where vendor authority really sits today, and how brands can regain control through the right permissions, support paths, and hybrid strategies.

Agency Best Practice | Clearing Amazon Inventory: Cost, Causes, and Liquidation Options for Brands

How should Amazon brands deal with slow-moving and stuck inventory before fees, margin erosion, and bad decisions pile up? In this episode, Paul Sonneveld speaks with Chad Davis, founder of Lucra Commerce, about how excess inventory happens, what it truly costs, and how brands should evaluate their options—from price moves and Subscribe & Save plays to removals, disposals, and doing nothing when storage economics actually justify it.

Amazon Vendor | How to Build Strong Vendor Relationships With Amazon — and Making AVS Pay Off

What does a strong Amazon vendor relationship actually look like—and when is AVS worth the cost? In this episode, Paul Sonneveld speaks with Travis Chappell (Head of Vendor Services at Venture Forge) about how vendors can move beyond transactional interactions with Amazon and build relationships that improve speed, visibility, and commercial outcomes. They unpack the real roles of AVS, Vendor Managers, Senior Vendor Managers, and Category Leads, how to manage those relationships intentionally, and how to tell whether AVS is creating value or just adding cost.

Amazon Vendor | Operating Rhythm Tune-Up for Large CPG: Recalibrating KPIs, and Ways of Working

Large CPG teams don’t lose on Amazon because they lack effort—they lose because their operating rhythm can’t keep up with complexity. In this episode, Donte McCrary-McClain (Willse-McClain Advisory) explains why late February is the ideal moment to tune up your Vendor Central ways of working, how to choose KPIs that actually trigger decisions, and how to build launch governance that prevents cross-functional chaos. Expect practical frameworks for KPI ownership, readiness gates, weekly huddles that drive action (not decks), and a repeatable learning loop across content, media, and supply.