In 1995, Debra Keyes was a tax specialist and mother who’d never been on the web. On a getaway weekend with her husband, she had an idea to start an online lingerie store with her sister. In less than two weeks, they resold the $80,000 in lingerie and adult costumes they’d purchased, and First Fantasies was born. Keyes’ young children, and their cousins, asked why the family business didn’t sell costumes for kids. Costume Cuzzins followed shortly thereafter.

Selling online has changed dramatically since Keyes launched her business in 1995. “Back then you could do your own coding to generate search engine traffic, but today it costs money,” says Keyes. “I woke up one day to a monthly advertising bill of $65,000. The next day Amazon.com called and I haven’t looked back.” Keyes began Selling on Amazon in 2000 and saw her sales increase immediately. “Amazon doesn’t just drive traffic - it drives customers looking to buy costumes right then and there,” says Keyes. The company also hosts several Webstores to reach niche audiences, and through Seller Central, Keyes is able to track inventory from all selling channels and maintain all sites in one place.

Though they have their own warehouse, Keyes has used Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) since it was first offered. “If something happened to my warehouse in Utah, like a snow storm or natural disaster, my business wouldn’t be totally stopped thanks to FBA,” says Keyes. “FBA also allows us to offer free shipping and overnight shipping to give our customers what they want, when they want it. The costume business is competitive - we all offer the exact same Cinderella costume - so we have to utilize tools such as FBA to help generate sales and receive positive customer feedback.”

Like many smart business owners, Keyes saw the bad economy coming and did what she could to lower operational costs. She decreased her advertising budget and put as much product as possible on Amazon.com. The result? First Fantasies-Costume Cuzzins saw a 23% increase in sales in 2009. “Customers trust the sellers on Amazon.com because Amazon is customer-centric and provides the technology and tools sellers need to match that same level of service.”