Every successful Amazon FBA wholesale seller builds their business on a repeatable process for evaluating new brands — a consistent framework that separates the brands worth pursuing from the ones that will waste your time capital and storage space. The nine brand reviews published earlier in this series — covering CeraVe Yankee Candle Milton Dove Oral-B Pedigree Johnson’s Baby Fairy and Nivea — each apply the same underlying evaluation logic to a specific brand. But the brands reviewed in this series represent a tiny fraction of the thousands of wholesale brands available to UK and US FBA sellers. The ability to evaluate any new brand that crosses your path — whether you find it through the Brandhunterz Brands Directory reverse sourcing on Amazon or a supplier’s price list — using the same rigorous framework is what separates sellers who build consistent growing catalogues from those who make random sourcing decisions and end up with stock they cannot sell at a profit.

We are Brandhunterz Ltd — a UK registered wholesale sourcing company (Company No: 15342697) — and in this complete framework guide we lay out the exact five-stage process for evaluating any wholesale brand for Amazon FBA — covering brand profile assessment Amazon demand and competition analysis margin calculation wholesale accessibility evaluation and final scoring — with the specific tools research steps and decision criteria that tell you clearly whether a brand is worth sourcing or not.

Why You Need a Brand Evaluation Framework

The most common mistake new Amazon FBA wholesale sellers make is ordering stock based on brand name recognition alone. A brand being well known to consumers does not mean it is a viable FBA wholesale opportunity. As the nine brand reviews in this series demonstrate — even within the same brand some SKUs are excellent FBA opportunities and others are completely unviable. Without a systematic evaluation framework sellers make sourcing decisions based on incomplete information — ordering products that have too many competing sellers products where FBA fees exceed the margin products in gated categories they cannot list in or products from brands whose wholesale pricing leaves no room for profit after all costs are included. A consistent framework eliminates these mistakes before they cost you money.

Common Sourcing Mistake	What Goes Wrong	Framework Stage That Prevents It
Ordering based on brand name alone	Popular brand but all its ASINs have 10 or more competing sellers and a declining Buy Box price — stock sits and loses margin	Stage 2 — Amazon Demand Analysis
Ordering without calculating FBA fees	Low price product with high FBA fees — selling price of £4 with FBA fees of £3.50 leaves nothing for stock cost — instant loss	Stage 3 — Margin Calculation
Ordering a gated product before ungating	Stock arrives at prep centre — seller cannot list because the ASIN or category requires prior approval — capital tied up with no income	Stage 1 — Brand Profile Assessment
Sourcing at secondary market pricing	Pays too much for stock through an unofficial channel — margin calculation was based on projected trade pricing — actual cost kills the ROI	Stage 4 — Wholesale Accessibility
Chasing a low-scoring brand	Invests time and capital in a brand that scores poorly on demand accessibility and margin — opportunity cost of not pursuing a better brand instead	Stage 5 — Final Scoring

Stage 1 — Brand Profile Assessment

Before looking at a single ASIN or opening Keepa understand the brand at a macro level. Stage 1 takes fifteen to thirty minutes and prevents you from wasting hours on detailed research for a brand that was never going to be viable. Here is what to assess:

Assessment Point	What to Find Out	Where to Look
Parent company and distribution type	Is this a large FMCG brand distributed through wholesalers — an independent brand that sells direct to retailers — or a brand with exclusive distribution that limits reseller access?	Brand website — trade section — Brandhunterz Brands Directory
Amazon category and gating status	Is the brand’s category gated on Amazon UK or USA? If yes — do you already have category approval — or do you need to ungate before you can list?	Amazon Seller Central — search ASIN — click Request Approval — check status
Number of third-party sellers on Amazon	How many third-party sellers does the brand have across its ASINs — a brand with many third-party sellers has open distribution and is accessible — a brand with only one seller may have exclusive distribution	SmartScout — brand overview page — third-party seller count
Product price range	What is the typical selling price range of this brand’s products on Amazon — are there enough SKUs in the £8 to £30 range to support viable FBA margins after fees — or is the entire range priced too low?	Amazon search results — filter by brand — review price range of listings
Hazmat or restricted product check	Does the brand sell liquid cleaning products aerosols or other products that may be subject to Amazon’s hazmat review — if so confirm FBA eligibility for specific ASINs before ordering	Amazon Seller Central — inventory — add a product — check FBA eligibility

Stage 2 — Amazon Demand Analysis with Keepa

Stage 2 is the core research stage — and Keepa is the essential tool. The goal of Stage 2 is to identify at least three specific ASINs within the brand that pass all five Keepa checks — these become your initial sourcing targets. Here is the exact Keepa research process:

Keepa Check	What to Look For	Pass Criteria
Check 1 — Sales rank history	Orange line over 12 months — consistent and low with no prolonged gaps or rank spikes that suggest the product goes in and out of stock regularly	Consistently within top 3,000 in the main category over 12 months
Check 2 — Buy Box seller count	Seller graph — count the FBA sellers rotating through the Buy Box — too many sellers means intense competition and margin pressure — too few may mean restricted distribution	Two to six FBA sellers — no single seller above 60% Buy Box share
Check 3 — Amazon first-party share	Buy Box history — is the Amazon badge present — if Amazon holds significant Buy Box time it will consistently undercut on price making it very difficult to compete profitably	Amazon absent or holding under 25% of Buy Box time
Check 4 — Buy Box price stability	Green price line over 12 months — flat or gently rising means stable margin environment — sustained downward trend means increasing competition eroding margins over time	Buy Box price flat or within 12% variation over 12 months — no sustained downward trend
Check 5 — New seller entry rate	Seller count change in last 90 days — a sudden large jump in seller count in the last quarter signals incoming competition that will soon compress the Buy Box price — avoid ASINs with recent large seller count increases	Seller count stable over past 90 days — no sudden large increase

Stage 3 — Margin Calculation with AMZScout

Every ASIN that passes all five Keepa checks in Stage 2 goes through a full margin calculation in Stage 3 using AMZScout. The margin calculation must use your actual confirmed wholesale cost — not an estimate — which means Stage 3 only delivers a definitive result once you have a wholesale price from a distributor. Here is the full margin calculation process:

Margin Component	How to Calculate It	Notes
Selling price	Use the current Buy Box price from Keepa — not the highest price or the lowest — the actual Buy Box price at the time of your research	Use the 90-day average Buy Box price from Keepa for a more conservative estimate
Amazon referral fee	AMZScout calculates this automatically based on the category — typically 8% for Health and Beauty Baby and Pet — 15% for Home and Kitchen — always verify the correct category fee rate	Referral fee is a percentage of the selling price — higher price products pay more in absolute terms but the same percentage
FBA fulfilment fee	AMZScout calculates this based on the product’s weight and dimensions — input the actual product weight and dimensions from the Amazon listing for accuracy — especially important for pet food and heavy household products	FBA fees are weight and size based — always verify dimensions for any product that may be oversize
Prep centre cost	Add your prep centre’s per-unit cost — typically £0.75 to £1.20 per unit for standard labelling and preparation — confirm with your specific prep centre	Add this manually to the AMZScout calculation as a per-unit cost
Currency buffer for international sellers	If you pay for stock in a different currency to your Amazon disbursements add a 3% to 5% buffer to account for exchange rate movement between purchase and disbursement — use Wise to minimise currency conversion costs	International sellers should always include a currency buffer in their margin calculation
Wholesale cost per unit	Your confirmed wholesale cost from the distributor divided by the number of units — this is the most important input in the entire calculation — never estimate this figure — always confirm it with your distributor before calculating margin	The maximum viable wholesale cost is: Selling price minus all fees minus target profit
Minimum ROI threshold	Calculate ROI as net profit divided by wholesale cost — your minimum threshold should be 25% ROI for a standard FBA wholesale product — below 25% the margin is too thin to absorb any unexpected cost increase or Buy Box price movement	25% ROI minimum — 30% or above preferred — below 20% reject the ASIN

Stage 4 — Wholesale Accessibility Evaluation

Stage 4 confirms whether you can actually access the brand at the pricing your Stage 3 margin calculation requires. A brand can pass Stages 1 2 and 3 theoretically but if you cannot source it at the required wholesale cost it is not a viable opportunity for you. Here is how to evaluate wholesale accessibility:

Accessibility Factor	How to Assess It
Find distributor contacts	Use the Brandhunterz Brands Directory to find verified wholesale distributors for the brand — cross-reference with reverse sourcing on Amazon — search the brand’s website for a trade or wholesale contact — use SmartScout to identify which distributors are already selling the brand on Amazon
Send professional outreach emails	Send a professional trade account enquiry email from a business email address — introduce your Amazon FBA business — provide your prep centre delivery address — request their wholesale price list and trade account application — follow up after 5 to 7 business days if no response
Confirm wholesale pricing against your threshold	Once you receive the price list check whether the wholesale cost for your target ASINs is at or below the maximum viable wholesale cost you calculated in Stage 3 — if the wholesale cost is above your maximum threshold the margin does not work at this distributor — try a second distributor or move to a different brand
Check distributor terms for restrictions	Read the distributor’s trade account terms carefully — check for MAP policies that may restrict your Amazon pricing — check for any clause that prohibits online marketplace reselling — only sign the trade account agreement if Amazon FBA reselling is explicitly permitted
Confirm minimum order requirements	Verify the minimum order quantity or minimum spend — confirm you can meet the minimum order with a realistic first order quantity for your target ASINs — never order more than you need for 30 to 45 days of cover on a first order with any new supplier

Stage 5 — Final Brand Scoring

Stage 5 is the final decision gate. Score the brand across five criteria on a scale of one to ten — total the scores — and use the scoring guide to decide whether to proceed. This is the same scoring system used across all nine brand reviews in this series:

Scoring Criterion	What to Score	Max Score
Amazon demand	How consistent and strong is the brand’s Amazon demand — how many Keepa-verified ASINs passed Stage 2 — how reliable is the year-round sales rank	10
Wholesale accessibility	How easy is it to find a distributor and open a trade account — is the category gated — are there MAP or reselling restrictions that complicate access	10
Margin potential	How many ASINs passed the Stage 3 margin calculation at 25% ROI or above — how much headroom is there between wholesale cost and maximum viable cost	10
Competition level	How manageable is the Buy Box competition — what is the average seller count on your target ASINs — is price stable or declining — are Amazon first-party sales limited	10
Suitability for your current level	Does this brand match your current account approval status capital level and operational capacity — a great brand for an advanced seller may be a poor choice for a newer seller who lacks ungating or capital	10
Total score	Sum of all five criteria	50

Total Score	Overall Rating	Decision
40 to 50	Excellent brand	Prioritise immediately — open distributor account — place first order on your highest-scoring ASINs
30 to 39	Good brand	Worth pursuing — identify the criteria where you scored lower and ensure they are understood and managed before ordering
20 to 29	Marginal brand	Proceed with caution — only if you have a specific compelling ASIN that passes Stages 2 and 3 strongly — otherwise spend your research time on higher-scoring brands
Below 20	Poor brand	Do not pursue — move to next brand on your research list

Your Complete Brand Evaluation Checklist

Evaluation Step	Stage	Done
Parent company and distribution model identified — wholesale distribution confirmed as open not exclusive	1	☐
Amazon category gating status checked — ungating confirmed or planned before any stock is ordered	1	☐
SmartScout third-party seller count reviewed — brand confirmed as having open distribution with multiple resellers	1	☐
Minimum three ASINs above price threshold identified and all five Keepa checks passed on each	2	☐
Full AMZScout margin calculation completed for each Keepa-approved ASIN — minimum 25% ROI confirmed at confirmed wholesale cost	3	☐
Authorised distributor identified — outreach email sent — trade account application requested	4	☐
Wholesale price list received — confirmed wholesale cost below maximum viable threshold — distributor terms checked for MAP and reselling restrictions	4	☐
Brand scored across all five criteria — total score calculated — decision made based on scoring guide	5	☐
Brand fully evaluated — decision made — either proceeding with first order or moving to next brand on research list	All	✅ Complete

How to Apply This Framework to Find Your Next Brand

The framework is only as valuable as the quality of the brands you apply it to. Here are the three most effective methods for finding new brands to evaluate:

Conclusion — The Framework Is the Business

The most successful Amazon FBA wholesale sellers are not the ones who find a single magical brand and ride it indefinitely — they are the ones who apply a consistent evaluation framework to a continuous pipeline of brand research and build a catalogue of twenty to thirty proven products across multiple supplier relationships each one placed there because it passed every stage of the framework before a single unit was ordered. The five-stage framework in this guide — Brand Profile — Amazon Demand Analysis — Margin Calculation — Wholesale Accessibility — Final Scoring — is the same logic that underlies the nine brand reviews in this series and the same process that every serious Amazon FBA wholesale seller uses whether they call it a framework or not. Start with the Brandhunterz Brands Directory to find your brand leads — verify demand with Keepa — confirm margin with AMZScout — discover new opportunities with SmartScout — manage your currency with Wise — and apply the framework to every brand before placing a single order.