In the wake of Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs, Amazon is changing some of its business practices, including the operation of Amazon Haul, the company’s version of Chinese used goods sites like Temu and Shein.
On Tuesday, The Information reported that Amazon Haul’s offerings will now include products from well-known brands such as Adidas, Levi’s, and Gap, which are shipped from Amazon’s inventory stored in warehouses in the United States. This is almost the opposite of what Haul originally promised: very (very) cheap unbranded goods coming directly from manufacturers in China. In exchange for a week- or two-week wait for parcels from China, Amazon Haul customers were able to load their digital carts with clothing, accessories, household goods, and more that cost less than $20.
That baseline has disappeared: as you scroll through Haul, you’ll see a new “Favorite Brands” section that features products from companies with which U.S. shoppers are more familiar, such as Under Armour, The Children’s Place, and Vera Bradley. The “under $20” hook also seems irrelevant: in a few seconds of browsing, I found makeup bags for $20.99, leggings for $27.20, and dresses for $34.82. Some of these products have the same price on Haul and on classic Amazon, which raises the question of why a buyer would buy them on Haul at all. Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The changes in Haul’s operations are likely related to the tariffs imposed by Trump, which will tax all imports coming into the United States. But as I have written before, services like Haul are uniquely vulnerable because their ultra-low prices depend on optimal trade policies that most customers never consider. Specifically, Haul (as well as Shein, Temu, AliExpress, and dropshipping) relies on an exception that allows packages under $800 to enter the United States duty-free. The so-called de minimis rule has been widely used – 1.4 billion packages claimed it in 2024 – but now Trump plans to eliminate the exception, starting May 2. This puts Amazon Haul customers on the hook for duties they would otherwise be exempt from.
Amazon’s move to populate its Haul section with products that are already available in the US avoids these new tariffs – at least temporarily. It is clear that most of the products listed in the Haul section are still Temu, but starting next month, customers will be responsible for the tariffs if Trump’s plan is implemented as he has threatened. But by fulfilling Haul orders using inventory that is already in US warehouses, Amazon is buying itself some time. But in a few weeks, the “transportation” of cheap items is likely to become less affordable for buyers.
