Buzfeed article profiles orthodox Jewish sellers on Amazon
Yisroel (who lives in Lakewood) missed a lot — blogging, Napster, Wikipedia, Facebook, Twitter. Like many other Orthodox Jewish men, most of his education was spent studying the Torah and Talmudic law.
“I never went to business school or college — I barely finished high school,” the 46-year-old told BuzzFeed News. “I didn’t know how to turn on a computer until I was 35.”
Which makes him an unlikely founder of an Amazon business making $5 million annually.
Yisroel — who asked to be identified by his Hebrew name for reasons of privacy — is a deeply observant Orthodox Jew, one of the many who have turned to third-party sales on Amazon. The company’s third-party sellers make up 58% of all sales on the site. But there’s an estimate passed around third-party Amazon consultants that claims 7% of all Amazon third-party sales originate from a single zip code in Brooklyn, and that Orthodox Jewish–owned businesses make up 15% of marketplace sellers. Amazon declined to comment on both numbers. But sources told BuzzFeed News the company is well aware of this particular community, and Amazon seemed to nod to that in a statement to BuzzFeed News. “Brooklyn is home to many impressive independent retailers selling on Amazon,” it said.
About six years ago, Yisroel started his business from the dining room table of his home in Lakewood, which he has called home for more than 20 years. Here, visitors will find street signs in Yiddish, modestly dressed women in wigs gathered at cafés with small children on their laps and in strollers, Jewish restaurants lining the town’s small downtown strip, and even a kosher Chinese takeout spot.
Like many Orthodox women, Yisroel’s wife had been supporting the family for nearly 20 years while he studied the Talmud. But by 2013, the financial strain of children attending yeshivos at $25,000 a year grew too onerous.
“We had eight children and another on the way and it just, it was just the time to switch,” he said. “We needed something big.”
Am means nation and mazon means feed. It loosely translates to “feed the nation.”
An Orthodox friend suggested Amazon. Some people in the Orthodox Jewish Amazon seller community joke about what the word “Amazon” means in Hebrew — Am means nation and mazon means feed. It loosely translates to “feed the nation,” said Yisroel.
From his mother’s basement, the friend gave Yisroel a one-hour crash course on selling on the platform. Yisroel, a member of the Lithuanian or Litvish Orthodox tradition, started out packing and shipping a few products from his home, like grocery items and snacks. “Most people don’t start at my age,” he said. “Most people start off younger, but you gotta do what you gotta do. I’m thankful to God that he put me in this place.”
His housekeeper offered to help, and soon their sales began to rise — with a ping every hour. “I got on the phone and said, ‘I’m going to make a relationship with the company and I’m a good guy and I’ll move their product and work on it and dedicate myself to being successful on Amazon.’”
He pinpointed two or three niche products — grocery items and snacks — and called the supplier to build a direct relationship with them. Two years later, his business outgrew his dinner table and he moved to an 1,800-square-foot warehouse, then to his current space.
Now, six years later, he’s a direct vendor for Amazon products that include Melitta coffee filters, and gallon-size bottles of Clorox. His former housekeeper now runs the floor at his warehouse. So if you buy a pack of Melitta coffee filters and the product page shows “Sold by Amazon,” you may be buying them from Yisroel out of his warehouse in Lakewood.
“Amazon is a blessing especially to our community because it’s something where you don’t need a regular business education,” he said. “You can start out at your house and build up a business like that.” read more at Buzfeed.com
"There is even a kosher Chinese restaurant in Lakewood"
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