A boycott aimed at Amazon could hit small businesses instead

“Your boycott, which is meant to help small businesses, will actually HURT small businesses unless you educate your ‘constituents’ on how to determine if what they are buying is from Amazon or is actually from a third-party small business seller,” Barzvi wrote in her email to John Schwarz, the founder of The People’s Union USA, a self-described “grassroots movement” that initiated the economic blackout. The email was viewed by Modern Retail.

Her message underscored a point that often gets overlooked: more than half of Amazon’s sales come from independent third-party sellers, many of them small businesses. While Schwarz’s campaign frames Amazon as the target, Barzvi wanted him to understand that a boycott could end up hurting small businesses more than the company itself.

Now, after last week’s economic blackout went viral, the same grassroots movement is calling for a targeted weeklong boycott against Amazon, starting Friday. Schwarz is urging consumers to not shop at Amazon and its companies, which include Twitch, Prime Video and Whole Foods, for the week of March 7-14, according to his Instagram account. Schwarz is also planning boycotts against Walmart in April and May, as well as a campaign against McDonald’s in June, according to his Instagram.

The targeted weeklong boycott is just one of many social media-driven protests that are springing up right now. A 40-day boycott of Target also kicked off this week. And it’s unclear exactly how much staying power some of these boycotts will have. Schwarz and his grassroots movement have seemingly sprung up out of nowhere, but his Feb. 28 campaign gained traction on social media after celebrities like Stephen King and Bette Middler urged their followers not to shop that day.

As the idea of an Amazon boycott circulates online, Barzvi’s concerns are shared by some third-party sellers who say the effort overlooks how deeply intertwined small businesses are with the platform. A brief dip in sales may barely register for a company of Amazon’s size, they say, but it could create a more meaningful disruption for independent merchants who rely on Amazon to earn a living.

Several sellers said they didn’t notice a significant decline in sales on Feb. 28, when Schwarz’s broader call for an “economic blackout” first went viral. But the prospect of a more robust weeklong boycott has some sellers preparing for potential ripple effects, while others doubt it will move the needle at all. Either way, the moment highlights the complicated relationship many sellers have with Amazon — both dependent on the platform and frustrated by it.

“If his boycott actually gains traction, then it will ultimately end up hurting small businesses,” Barzvi told Modern Retail in an interview. “I feel like if you’re going to take this stand and you’re going to be the pied piper, then you better know what exactly it is that you’re doing and how it all works.”

Neither Amazon nor Schwarz responded to requests for comment by press time.

Under pressure

Last month’s economic blackout made a small dent on the bottom lines of companies. According to Earnest Analyst, debit and credit card spending fell 7.4% year over year on Feb. 28, driven by declines in restaurants and grocery stores. Spending on e-commerce sites actually increased 2.3% on Feb. 28. The day of the economic blackout was the lowest day for consumer spending out of the whole month. 

Momentum Commerce, which manages $6 billion in revenue annually on Amazon on behalf of brands like Crocs, Lego and Clorox, giving it a large sample to analyze sales performance, saw that sales on the platform were up 1% compared to the prior eight Fridays.

“Just in the U.S., Amazon rakes in north of $1 billion in retail sales every single day. This size makes the retailer naturally resilient, particularly when it comes to short-term disruptions,” John T. Shea, Momentum Commerce’s CEO, told Modern Retail in an email. “Regarding the week-long, Amazon-specific boycott action, given what we just observed, I’m skeptical it will have a significant, broad effect.”

Even though 27% of Amazon shoppers are aware of the planned boycott against Amazon, according to a survey of 3,000 consumers conducted by Numerator, only 9% said they intend to participate in the weeklong blackout. Fifty-three percent of those Amazon shoppers said they support its purpose. 

Other Amazon sellers agree with Barzvi that the premise behind the boycott is misguided. “My assumption is that they don’t understand how Amazon or Walmart.com or other marketplaces work, like how many mom-and-pops are on there and small- to medium-sized businesses,” said Craig Leslie, founder of The Bean Coffee Company.

The timing of an Amazon boycott couldn’t be worse, as sellers are already grappling with higher costs associated with President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs, Modern Retail previously reported. “Small businesses are already under pressure with pending tariffs and a slowdown in the economy,” said Brandon Fishman, the owner of the VitaCup coffee brand, which has been sold on Amazon since 2017. “It’s an awful idea to do anything to boycott sales right now.” 

Fishman said he didn’t see a sales slowdown on Feb. 28, so he’s hopeful this Amazon-focused boycott won’t hurt his bottom line. 

Similarly, Gwen McShea, president of Lean Edge Marketing in Vermont, which works with about 30 Amazon sellers, said she’s hopeful that Amazon’s so-called “Big Spring Sale,” which is slated to run from March 25 to March 31, will help offset any sales dips from Schwarz’s targeted Amazon boycott.

Last year, Amazon’s spring sales event drove a 6% increase in sales from 2023, according to Momentum Commerce.

But Leslie isn’t as confident. He also didn’t see an impact on sales on Feb. 28, but “a weeklong boycott could be a different story,” he said. “With a week, it’s going to get more press and it’s going to be in different media outlets for a longer period, so more consumers will see it.”

If the boycott gains enough traction, Amazon sellers will bear the brunt of the damage, sellers say. 

“At the end of the day, I don’t understand what these boycotts are accomplishing,” Leslie said. “I get the broader idea of it, but it’s going to hurt the economy as a whole and a lot of small businesses.”

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