From seller to advocate: an Amazon entrepreneur champions small businesses

Written by Kristin Rae, Founder of Inspire Travel Luggage

I grew up in a small, rural community. Far from most things, but especially far from having any kind of influence in Washington, D.C. At least that’s what I always believed.

When I first launched Inspire Travel Luggage in 2013, I tried doing things the “traditional way,” selling to big box stores. I even became a certified woman-owned business. I thought that having a special certification would help me connect with supplier diversity programs that help small businesses navigate corporate procurement more successfully. Boy, was I wrong. I spent the next year struggling to get buyers to return emails, make sales and grow in a meaningful way.

When I discovered that Amazon provided an opportunity for small businesses, like me, to sell in their store, I decided to give it a try. I had no idea that being an Amazon seller would turn everything around for me. As a small rural designer, I am now able to utilize Amazon and its world class fulfillment network to sell and grow my brand.

My advocacy came organically. I first got involved in 2018 when the Section 301 tariffs began to affect my supply chain. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Section 301, it is a federal measure to allow the U.S. Trade Representative to impose higher tariffs on goods from certain countries. It’s good in some ways, but for small businesses it restricts our supply chain and results in higher costs on imports. When the tariffs first went into effect, I reached out to Congressman Darin LaHood to explain the effects this new trade policy was going to have on small businesses. He sits on the House Committee on Ways and Means, the committee overseeing the tariffs, so he was really knowledgeable and open to having a working dialogue. I spoke with him on 3 or 4 occasions about the status, progress and relief available to businesses like mine.

Through this initial advocacy work, I realized there was an opportunity to help lawmakers better understand the online retail small business experience and I felt compelled to educate lawmakers and their staff on issues important to sellers. When I began to speak out and tell my story, I knew that I was not just speaking for myself, but also for all the other small businesses going through similar challenges. Being a mom of young children, my remote status is a benefit to me, but it also presents a disadvantage when it comes to policy representation and visibility. Having your voice heard in Washington is much more complex for an e-commerce small business because we are not as visible to lawmakers.

In June, Amazon invited me to be a part of their Seller Advocacy Summit, joining 38 other sellers from 20 states in Washington, D.C. to meet with lawmakers and further amplify the small business advocacy work I had been doing in my local area.

There are many types of sellers on Amazon and we come from diverse backgrounds. It was great to meet other business leaders who care about promoting positive public policies. The Advocacy Summit gave us all the chance to show lawmakers and staffers how different each of our businesses are and to share the unique issues that we encounter. While I have made sure that Congressman LaHood knows the challenges my business faces, sadly, many Members of Congress do not understand e-commerce. So, engaging and being a resource for them has become a central focus of my efforts. Being a persistent presence is not only valuable, but vital to sellers whose interests might not always be considered in important policy discussions.

Getting involved looks different for everyone. For me, I truly believe representation matters; and I have first-hand experience that it works. Advocacy doesn’t stop with one visit or a casual conversation. It begins there and continues back in your own community. I will be hosting Congressman LaHood on a tour of our facility to see the contributions sellers make to our local economy. My goal is to stay engaged, stay authentic and stay connected to the advocacy work I started years ago. My hope is that more events like the Advocacy Summit continue to provide small businesses the chance to represent on The Hill.