Glossary · 39 terms · 9 categories

UK Amazon FBA glossary

39 terms, abbreviations, and concepts every UK Amazon FBA seller should know. From ASINs to Net 30 to EORI numbers — clear definitions, UK-grounded, no jargon-stuffing.

Jump to:Sourcing Identifiers Fulfilment Marketplace Wholesale Tax & Importing Business Setup Tools Community

Sourcing

Online Arbitrage· OA: Buying products from online retailers (typically at sale or clearance prices) and reselling them on Amazon at a profit. The arbitrage is between the retailer's discounted price and Amazon's market price. UK OA sources include retailer websites, deal aggregators, and Amazon UK itself.
Retail Arbitrage· RA: Buying products from physical retail stores (Boots, B&M, Argos, Toolstation, Tesco etc.) at clearance or sale prices and reselling on Amazon. UK RA is one of the most accessible entry points for new FBA sellers because of the low capital requirement.
Wholesale: Buying products at trade price directly from a brand or distributor, ordering large quantities at standardised prices, and replenishing the same SKUs over months or years. The highest-margin sourcing model at scale.
A2A flip· A2A · Amazon-to-Amazon: Sourcing a product from one Amazon listing and reselling it on another Amazon listing (or to FBA) at a profit. Usually arises from temporary price discrepancies, multi-marketplace differences, or "lightning deal" pricing.

Identifiers

ASIN: Amazon Standard Identification Number — a 10-character alphanumeric ID Amazon assigns to every product on its catalogue. Format example: B0XXXXXXXX. Each unique product variation has its own ASIN.
EAN: European Article Number — a 13-digit barcode used on most physical products sold in Europe and the UK. Often used to look up an ASIN when you have the physical product but not the ASIN.
UPC: Universal Product Code — a 12-digit barcode predominantly used in North America. Equivalent role to the EAN but slightly different format. Most UK products use EANs; UPCs appear on imports from US suppliers.
FNSKU: Fulfillment Network Stock Keeping Unit — Amazon's internal tracking label used inside FBA warehouses. Every unit sent into FBA gets an FNSKU label printed on it (or attached during prep) so Amazon can track which seller's inventory is which.

Fulfilment

FBA· Fulfillment by Amazon: Amazon's logistics service where sellers send inventory to Amazon's fulfilment centres and Amazon handles storage, picking, packing, shipping, and customer service. The dominant model for UK third-party sellers operating at scale.
FBM· Fulfillment by Merchant: The seller fulfils orders from their own warehouse (or a third-party logistics partner) instead of Amazon. Used for oversized items, hazmat, or when fees on a particular product make FBA unprofitable.
MFN· Merchant Fulfilled Network: Amazon's formal name for FBM. Used interchangeably with FBM in most documentation.
Prep centre: Third-party UK warehouse that prepares products to FBA standards before shipping into Amazon's fulfilment centres — including FNSKU labelling, polybagging, bundling, removing retail packaging, etc. Typical UK rates: £0.40-£0.80 per unit.
IPI· Inventory Performance Index: Amazon's metric (0-1000 scale) measuring how well a seller manages their FBA inventory. Affects storage limits and fees. Above 400 is healthy; below 400 triggers limits.
FBA Partnered Carrier: Amazon's discounted UPS shipping option for inbound FBA shipments, accessed via Seller Central. Typically the cheapest way to ship pallets or boxes into FBA from a UK supplier or prep centre.

Marketplace

Buy Box: The default purchase option shown on an Amazon product listing. Multiple sellers can sell the same product, but only one wins the Buy Box at any given time. Roughly 80%+ of Amazon UK sales go through the Buy Box.
BSR· Best Seller Rank: Amazon's ranking of how well a product is selling within its category. Lower = better-selling. UK FBA sellers typically only consider products under BSR 50,000 to ensure adequate sales velocity.
Sales rank: Synonym for BSR. The rank within an Amazon category — lower numbers indicate higher sales velocity.
Hijacker: An unauthorised third-party seller who lists themselves on a brand's product page, often selling counterfeits or attempting to undercut the brand. A common reason brands restrict who can sell their products on Amazon.

Wholesale

MOQ· Minimum Order Quantity: The smallest first order a wholesale supplier requires. UK distributors typically have MOQs of £200-£500 for new accounts, £1,000-£3,000 for brand-direct accounts. Often negotiable — a key skill in wholesale account opening.
Net 30 / Net 60: Trade payment terms where you receive an invoice and have 30 (or 60) days to pay it. Net terms unlock significant cash flow advantages because you can sell stock before paying for it. Typically negotiated with UK suppliers after the first 2-3 successful orders.
MAP· Minimum Advertised Price: A pricing policy set by brands that prohibits resellers from advertising or selling their products below a specified minimum price. MAP-protected brands tend to have more stable margins and less price-warring on Amazon.
MSRP· Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price: The retail price the brand recommends for their product. Often used as a reference point in catalogues and for calculating expected margin from trade pricing.
EXW · FOB · CIF · DDP: Incoterms — international trade terms defining who pays for what during shipping. EXW (Ex Works) = buyer pays for everything from supplier's door. FOB (Free On Board) = supplier pays to port of origin, buyer takes over. CIF (Cost Insurance Freight) = supplier pays freight + insurance to destination port. DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) = supplier pays everything including UK customs and last-mile delivery.

Tax & Importing

VAT· Value Added Tax: UK consumption tax of 20% on most goods. UK businesses with turnover over £90,000 must register for VAT. VAT-registered sellers charge VAT on Amazon sales and reclaim VAT on supplier purchases — making them more profitable per unit on most products.
Flat Rate Scheme: A simplified UK VAT scheme where businesses pay a fixed percentage of gross turnover to HMRC instead of calculating output VAT minus input VAT. Often advantageous for small UK FBA sellers in their first year of VAT registration.
EORI number: Economic Operator Registration and Identification number — a UK customs ID required for any business importing goods into the UK from outside the UK. Free to obtain via gov.uk. Required even for one-off imports.
HS Code· Harmonised System Code · Commodity Code: A standardised numerical code used by customs authorities worldwide to classify imported goods. The UK uses 10-digit commodity codes. The HS code determines the import duty rate paid on a product. Look up at gov.uk/trade-tariff.
Import duty: Tax paid to UK customs (HMRC) on goods imported into the UK from outside. Rate depends on the product's HS code — common UK rates: 0% for many electronics, 4-12% for homeware, 12% for many toys, up to 25%+ for some footwear and clothing.
Import VAT: VAT paid to HMRC on the value of imported goods. For VAT-registered sellers, this is reclaimable on the next VAT return (cash flow only). For non-VAT-registered sellers, this is a real cost — typically 20% of (goods value + freight + duty).
Section 301 tariffs: Additional US tariffs on certain Chinese-origin goods. Relevant to UK FBA sellers who source via the US or import US-routed goods. Adds 7.5-25% on top of standard duty for affected categories.

Business Setup

Companies House: The UK government registry where Limited Companies are registered. Provides a Certificate of Incorporation that wholesalers require during account applications. Registration costs £12 and takes 24 hours.
Sole Trader: A UK self-employment structure where the individual is legally the same entity as the business. Simpler tax setup than a Limited Company, but no separation between personal and business liability. Common starting point for new FBA sellers.
Limited Company· Ltd Co: A UK company structure with separate legal personality from its owners. Director pays themselves via salary + dividends. Generally tax-advantageous over Sole Trader once profits exceed ~£30,000/year. Required (or strongly preferred) by most UK wholesalers.

Tools

Keepa: The standard sales-rank and price-history tool used by UK FBA sellers. Subscription is roughly £15/month for the website + Chrome extension. Essential for evaluating products on Amazon — shows BSR over time, Buy Box price history, FBA seller count, etc.
SellerAmp / SellerAmp 360: A UK-popular product analysis tool, often used alongside Keepa. SellerAmp SAS for individual lookups; SellerAmp 360 for batch analysis of large supplier catalogues during wholesale scanning.
Tactical Arbitrage: A heavy-duty online arbitrage and wholesale catalogue scanning tool. More expensive than Keepa or SellerAmp (typically £100-£200/month) but enables high-volume bulk product analysis.
Inventory Lab: Inventory management and accounting software designed specifically for Amazon FBA sellers.

Community

Lead group: A Discord or Telegram community where members share product sourcing opportunities. Quality varies dramatically — top UK lead groups (like The Inner Circle FBA) offer 50+ daily verified leads; low-quality groups recycle public deals.
Ungating: The process of getting Amazon to authorise a seller to list products in a restricted category or under a restricted brand. Requires submitting documentation (invoices, brand authorisation letters, etc.). Successful ungating opens up significantly more profitable categories.

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