Amazon has completely removed these products from its shelves

Recently, the CEO of the US insurance giant UnitedHealth Group was shot and killed on the streets of New York, which unexpectedly led to a hot sale of related products. However, the good times did not last long , and this wave of hot sales was soon killed.

Amazon removes products related to the "Thompson" incident

On December 4, local time , Brian Thompson, CEO of the American insurance giant UnitedHealth Group, was shot and killed on the streets of New York. This vicious incident shocked the world. Now it has been nearly 10 days since the incident, but there are still many follow-ups, some of which are related to online sellers.

According to reports, the words "denial, defense, evidence" were found on the bullet casing at the scene where Thompson was killed . This is said to be a means used by health insurance companies to evade claims . According to a survey released by KFF, a nonprofit health policy research organization in June 2023, most insured American adults have encountered at least one health insurance problem in a year, including a claim rejection.

After the shooting, sellers on platforms such as Amazon, eBay , and Etsy quickly launched T-shirts, hoodies, mugs, hats, wine glasses, and other products with the words " Deny , Defend , Depose " printed on them .

However, Amazon has now removed these products, including handbags and mugs with the words "FREE LUIGI" printed on them that were briefly sold on the platform . An Amazon spokesperson said the products were removed because they violated Amazon's regulations against offensive and controversial products.

As of yesterday morning, searching for these three phrases on Amazon no longer found the above products. However, related books are still available for sale. Among them, Delay , Defend, Deny , written by author and law professor Jay Feinman , has sold out and topped the BSR list of commercial insurance books . The book was published in 2010 and is a book criticizing the health insurance industry.

Although Amazon has removed these products, they are still sold on other e-commerce platforms, including eBay, Etsy and TikTok Shop . On these platforms, in addition to the above products, consumers can also buy stickers, Christmas decorations, bed sheets, pins, buttons, backpacks, etc. printed with the phrase.

An eBay spokesperson said eBay policy does not prohibit the sale of items with the phrases "Deny, Defend, Depose," but items that glorify or incite violence, including those celebrating Thompson's murder, are prohibited .

The popular ones are regarded as heroes, and the peripheral products are snapped up.

It is reported that Thompson's killing has caused widespread anger online among those who are dissatisfied with the US health care system, leading some people to express support for the gunman Luigi Mangione and even regard him as a folk hero. This sentiment has spread to the commodity field.

The “Denial, Defense, Evidence” merchandise began to go on sale online shortly after Thompson was killed , but other items featuring surveillance footage have already started to sell well, including a jacket similar to the one Mangione wore in the surveillance footage that quickly sold out.

On Macy's official website, more than 700 of the jackets, priced at $225, were sold within 48 hours. They are currently out of stock.

Subsequently, more businesses took advantage of the opportunity to profit. On December 9, local time, Mangione was arrested, and the police subsequently released his photo. Soon after, a large number of products printed with his portrait, including dog squares, cups, hats, T-shirts, etc., began to be sold online. Most of these Mangione-themed products came from dropshippers, that is, sellers who print products on demand after receiving orders.

Currently, UnitedHealthcare is cracking down on these products that glorify Mangione. After searching, Amazon and Etsy no longer have related products for sale, but on eBay , mugs, T-shirts and sweatshirts are still for sale, and these links have been sold. Some products have even sold out, or only the last one or two are left.

Even if all of these platforms remove Mangione-related products, however, some sellers are still able to find workarounds, such as using Nintendo's Luigi and his unique style to create video game character-themed merchandise and link it to Mangione, such as shirts featuring the cartoon character wearing a hoodie and holding a machine gun.

Or they choose to use existing Nintendo Luigi merchandise, like the generic beanie hat emblazoned with the Luigi logo, which has quickly become an ironic souvenir.

In this regard, many foreign netizens lamented: "This world is so mysterious!"

In fact, it is not new to make souvenirs with the image of criminals or suspects. For example, a seller on the website launched a scented candle with the theme of American gay killer Jeffrey Dahmer for $14.

Hot products are good, but don’t sell them randomly

In the field of cross-border e-commerce, sellers have always had keen business insights and are good at exploring potential business opportunities from various hot spots and quickly launching corresponding peripheral products. The following are some of the hot spots that sellers focus on and their typical cases:

First, popular TV series are undoubtedly an important source of business opportunities. During the popular broadcast of the Barbie movie released in 2023 and the phenomenal TV series Squidward Illusion launched by Netflix in 2021, a large number of peripheral products closely related to the elements in the drama emerged on e-commerce platforms. For example, Barbie dolls, Barbie Dreamhouse, Loblolly cooking kits, retro sportswear and other peripheral products have received extremely high orders in the market.

Second, sellers often seize emergencies as business opportunities. Take the recent "Trump shooting" as an example. After the incident attracted widespread attention, sellers responded quickly and a large number of products printed with Trump's "famous scenes" were put on the shelves by sellers.

Third, large-scale sports events also contain unlimited business opportunities. During the 2022 Winter Olympics, Bing Dwen Dwen, the mascot of the Winter Olympics, quickly became popular, and its peripheral products, such as warm and practical down jackets, small and portable key chains, etc., quickly emerged on Amazon's BSR list in multiple categories, becoming popular products that consumers competed to buy.

Fourth, the upgrading of popular electronic products can also drive the hot sales of peripheral products. For example, every time Apple launches a new iPhone, the sales of accessories such as mobile phone cases that match it will increase significantly. Many sellers have seen this pattern and have arranged the production and sales of new iPhone peripheral products in advance, thus seizing the initiative in market competition.

However, the life cycle of such products is usually very short. The sales popularity of such peripheral products is usually closely related to the broadcast and hype cycle of popular events or TV series. Once the popularity is over, market demand will drop rapidly, and the products may face the risk of unsalable backlogs, which will bring challenges to sellers' inventory management and capital turnover.

At the same time, intellectual property risks are a major problem. Character images, logos, patterns, lines, etc. in popular TV dramas and events are all protected by copyright. If a seller uses the trademark on the same or similar products without permission, it is easy to cause confusion among consumers and constitute trademark infringement.

Some peripheral products may involve design patents, etc. If the product sold by the seller is too similar in appearance to the patented peripheral product, it will also constitute patent infringement.

Once a complaint is received, the platform may remove the product from the shelves, restrict sales rights, or even close the store, causing huge losses to the seller.

Moreover, there are hidden problems in the process, such as supply chain risks and high market saturation. If sellers do not have strong skills, they should be cautious when getting involved in such products.

CEO, UnitedHealth Group

Amazon