Here's why modern e-commerce is rubbish and you can blame it on experiment focused Amazon

Amazon is the reason e-commerce is boring. So says entrepreneur Juozas Kaziukenas.

In a LinkedIn post, he argued that the company “launches experiments it doesn't care about; it kills those experiments because it doesn't care about them. It has so much market share (40%+) and competitors that are even more boring (Walmart) that it doesn't bother innovating."

He added: "Sure, it invests all its efforts into fulfillment and ad tech. But how we shop on Amazon is the same in 2025 as it was in 2005. The latest on the chopping block is Amazon Inspire, a surface level TikTok clone but only for shopping - it launched two years ago; it got shut down this month. It looked like the company's latest attempt at social commerce, but then it went nowhere."

Kaziukenas, an advisor to the likes of Quartile and Heyday, concluded by stating he doesn't know what the future of e-commerce is in the West but it is not going to be you know who that builds it. "It has its own flavour of innovator's dilemma that keeps it optimising the core flow but prevents it from discovering new flavours. Boring works, boring it is still producing growth, but we can dream bigger," he argued.

What do you think? A fair critique of Amazon or a tad harsh? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below 👇👇👇👇👇

2025 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS

E-commerce will be a key focus area at the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards. which will open for entries in March, celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our 2024 hall of fame entrants were revealed during an event which took place at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place HQ in Central London on 21st November, and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by comedian Lucy Porter.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “The event is now into its sixth year and what a journey it has been. The awards started life as an online only affair during the Covid outbreak, before launching as a small scale in real life event and growing year on year to the point where we’re now selling out this fine, historic venue.”

He added: “Congratulations to all of our finalists. Many submissions did not make it through to the final stage, and getting to this point is no mean feat. Checkout-free stores, automated supply chains, immersive experiences, on-demand delivery, next generation loyalty offerings, inclusive retail, green technology. We’ve got all the cool stuff covered this evening.”

“But just importantly we’ve got lots of great examples of companies taking innovative tech and making it usable in everyday operations - resulting in more efficiency and profitability in all areas.”

Congratulations to our 2024 winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Lucy Porter, and all those who attended November's gathering. 

For further information on the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards, please fill in the below form and we will get back to you asap.