Amazon (company) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Amazon.com, Inc.

Logo used since January 2000
Amazon's headquarters, the Doppler
Trade name	Amazon
Formerly	Cadabra, Inc. (1994–1995)
Type	Public
Traded as	NASDAQ: AMZN Nasdaq-100 component DJIA component S&P 100 component S&P 500 component
ISIN	ISIN: [https://isin.toolforge.org/?language=en&isin=US0231351067 US0231351067]
Industry	Conglomerate
Founded	July 5, 1994; 30 years ago (1994-07-05), in Bellevue, Washington, U.S.
Founder	Jeff Bezos
Headquarters	Seattle, Washington and Arlington, Virginia , U.S.
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Jeff Bezos (executive chairman) Andy Jassy (president and CEO)
Products	Echo Fire Tablet Fire TV Fire OS Kindle
Services	Amazon.com Amazon Alexa Amazon Appstore Amazon Clinic Amazon Luna Amazon Music Amazon Pay Amazon Prime Amazon Prime Video MGM+ One Medical Twitch Ring Amazon Web Services Amazon Robotics
Revenue	US$574.8 billion (2023)
Operating income	US$36.85 billion (2023)
Net income	US$30.43 billion (2023)
Total assets	US$527.9 billion (2023)
Total equity	US$201.9 billion (2023)
Owner	Jeff Bezos (9.8%)
Number of employees	≈ 1,525,000 (Dec. 2023)
Subsidiaries	List A9.com AbeBooks Alexa Internet Amazon.com Amazon Air Amazon Books Amazon Fresh Amazon Games Amazon Lab126 Amazon Logistics Amazon Pharmacy Amazon Publishing Amazon Robotics Amazon MGM Studios AWS Audible Blink Body Labs Book Depository ComiXology Eero LLC Goodreads Graphiq IMDb Kuiper Systems PillPack Ring Souq.com Twitch Interactive Whole Foods Market Woot Zappos Zoox

Amazon.com, Inc. (often just called Amazon) is a huge American technology company. It works in many areas like online shopping (e-commerce), cloud computing, online advertising, and digital streaming. Amazon is one of the "Big Five" American tech companies. The others are Alphabet (which owns Google), Apple, Meta (which owns Facebook), and Microsoft.

Jeff Bezos started Amazon on July 5, 1994, in Bellevue, Washington. It began as an online store just for books. But soon, it grew to sell almost everything. This is why people sometimes call it "The Everything Store."

Amazon owns many other companies. These include Amazon Web Services (for cloud computing), Zoox (for self-driving cars), Kuiper Systems (for satellite internet), and Amazon Lab126 (for making computer hardware). Other well-known Amazon companies are Ring, Twitch, IMDb, and Whole Foods Market. In 2017, Amazon bought Whole Foods for $13.4 billion. This greatly increased its presence in physical stores.

Amazon is known for changing industries with new technology. It often reinvests its profits to grow even bigger. As of 2023, Amazon is the world's largest online store and marketplace. It is also a top provider of smart speakers and cloud computing services (through AWS). Its live-streaming service, Twitch, is also very popular. Amazon is the largest internet company by how much money it makes. In 2021, it became the world's largest retailer outside of China. This was largely thanks to its paid membership, Amazon Prime, which has nearly 200 million members worldwide. Amazon is also the second-largest private employer in the United States.

As of October 2023, Amazon.com is the 12th most visited website globally. About 82% of its visitors come from the United States.

Amazon also offers lots of digital content. This includes movies and TV shows on Amazon Prime Video and MGM+. It has music on Amazon Music, live streams on Twitch, and audiobooks on Audible. Amazon Publishing prints books. Amazon MGM Studios makes films and TV shows. Amazon also makes popular electronics like Kindle e-readers, Echo smart speakers, Fire tablets, and Fire TV devices.

Like many big companies, Amazon sometimes faces discussions and concerns about its business practices.

Amazon's Journey: How It Grew

Early Days: 1994-2009

Jeff Bezos started Amazon on July 5, 1994. He chose Seattle because many skilled tech people lived there. This was due to Microsoft being in the area.

Amazon became a public company in May 1997. This meant its shares could be bought and sold by anyone. In 1998, it started selling music and videos. It also began working in other countries like the UK and Germany. The next year, Amazon started selling many more products. These included video games, electronics, home items, software, and toys.

In 2002, Amazon launched Amazon Web Services (AWS). At first, AWS helped web developers build apps on Amazon's shopping platform. In 2004, AWS started giving website popularity data. Later, in 2006, AWS began offering services for businesses. These included Simple Storage Service (S3) and Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2). These services let companies rent data storage and computing power from Amazon. In 2006, Amazon also started "Fulfillment by Amazon." This program allowed small businesses to sell products using Amazon's warehouses and delivery system.

Recent Growth: 2010-Present

Amazon bought the Whole Foods Market supermarket chain in 2017. It was the top online retailer in the U.S. with about $178 billion in sales in 2017. It has over 300 million active customer accounts worldwide.

Amazon grew a lot during the COVID-19 pandemic. It hired over 100,000 new staff in the U.S. and Canada. Some workers protested Amazon's decision to keep normal shifts during the pandemic. They were worried about safety in warehouses.

On February 2, 2021, Jeff Bezos announced he would step down as CEO. He became the executive chairman of Amazon's board. Andy Jassy, who was CEO of AWS, took over as CEO on July 5, 2021. In January 2023, Amazon cut over 18,000 jobs. This was mainly in its retail and human resources departments. It was an effort to reduce costs.

On November 8, 2023, Jeff Bezos planned to sell about 50 million of his Amazon shares. The first sale was 12 million shares for about $2 billion.

What Amazon Offers: Products and Services

Amazon.com: The Online Store

amazon.com

Logo since January 2000
Screenshot  Homepage
Type of site	E-commerce
Available in	Arabic Chinese Dutch English French German Hindi Italian Japanese Polish Portuguese Spanish Swedish Turkish
Owner	Amazon
Website	(original US site)
Commercial	Yes
Registration	Optional
Launched	1995; 30 years ago (1995)
Current status	Active
Written in	C++ and Java

Amazon.com is a huge online shopping platform. It sells many types of products. These include books, movies, music, and software. You can also find clothes, baby items, electronics, beauty products, and groceries. There are also health items, industrial supplies, kitchen tools, jewelry, and sports gear. Amazon websites are specific to different countries. For example, amazon.com is for the US, and amazon.co.uk is for the UK. Some sites offer shipping to other countries.

Visits to amazon.com grew from 615 million visitors a year in 2008 to over 2 billion per month in 2022. It is the 14th most visited website in the world.

Amazon's search results are partly affected by fees companies pay to promote their products. Amazon has different online stores for different countries. These stores have different products and prices. They are identified by their web address, like amazon.com or amazon.co.uk.

Amazon Marketplaces worldwide     Top-Level Domain     Served by neighboring Domain

Working with Other Companies

Amazon has partnered with many companies over the years. In 2000, Toys "R" Us agreed to be the only toy seller on Amazon. But later, Toys "R" Us sued Amazon. They said Amazon allowed other sellers to offer toys. A court agreed with Toys "R" Us in 2006.

In 2001, Amazon worked with Borders Group to manage Borders.com. Borders ended this deal in 2007 to start its own online store.

In 2011, Amazon partnered with DC Comics. This gave Amazon the only digital rights to popular comics like Superman and Batman. This led some bookstores like Barnes & Noble to stop selling these comics.

In 2013, Amazon teamed up with the United States Postal Service. This allowed Amazon to deliver orders on Sundays. This service started in big cities like Los Angeles and New York.

In 2017, Nike agreed to sell products on Amazon. Nike wanted Amazon to better stop fake goods. But this did not work out, and Nike left the partnership in 2019. Other companies like IKEA and Birkenstock also stopped selling on Amazon. They had similar problems with business practices and fake products.

In 2018, Amazon made a deal with Apple Inc.. This allowed Amazon to sell certain Apple products. After January 4, 2019, only Apple-approved sellers could sell Apple products on Amazon.

Amazon's Own Brands

Amazon sells many products under its own brand names. These include phone chargers, batteries, and diaper wipes. The AmazonBasics brand started in 2009. It now has hundreds of products. These include smartphone cases, computer mice, and dog crates. As of 2019, Amazon owned 34 private-label brands. These brands make up a small part of Amazon's total sales. Other Amazon brands include Presto!, Mama Bear, and Amazon Essentials.

Third-Party Sellers

A lot of Amazon's sales come from other sellers. These are called "third-party sellers." They sell their products on Amazon's website. Amazon processes these sales. It also rents space in its warehouses for these sellers. Small sellers can use Amazon Marketplace to sell new and used items at a set price.

Affiliate Program

Website owners can join Amazon's "affiliate program." They earn money if people click on Amazon links on their websites and then buy something. Worldwide, Amazon has over 900,000 members in this program. This program is very popular for websites and non-profits. It helps them earn a commission.

Product Reviews

Amazon lets people write reviews for each product. Reviewers give a rating from one to five stars. Amazon can show the reviewer's real name. It can also show if someone is a "top reviewer." In December 2020, Amazon removed the ability for people to comment on product reviews.

When asked why Amazon allowed negative reviews, Jeff Bezos said: "we want to make every book available—the good, the bad and the ugly ... to let truth loose."

Amazon Sales Rank

The Amazon sales rank (ASR) shows how popular a product is on Amazon. It updates every hour. It is like a "best sellers list" for millions of products. A high sales rank can help products get more attention on Amazon. This can lead to more sales. Amazon does not share exact sales numbers. However, it does provide some sales data to authors. Amazon says its sales rank is just a guide for customers.

Physical Stores

In November 2015, Amazon opened a physical Amazon Books store. It was in University Village in Seattle. All products in the store had the same prices as on Amazon's website. Amazon opened its tenth physical bookstore in 2017. There was talk that Amazon planned to open 300 to 400 bookstores. However, all its bookstores closed in 2022. Other Amazon retail stores, like "Amazon 4-Star," also closed.

In July 2016, Amazon announced a huge new facility. It was 1.1 million square feet in Palmer Township, Pennsylvania. As of 2024, Amazon is the third-largest employer in that region.

In 2020, Amazon Fresh opened several physical grocery stores. These stores are in the U.S. and the United Kingdom.

Hardware and Digital Services

Amazon offers many products and services. These include its digital assistant Alexa. There's also Amazon Music for music and Prime Video for videos. The Amazon Appstore provides apps for Android devices. The Kindle line has e-readers. Fire and Fire HD are color tablets. Audible sells audiobooks.

In September 2021, Amazon launched Astro. This is its first home robot. It uses Alexa smart home technology. You can control it from far away to check on pets or home security. It sends alerts if it finds something unusual.

In January 2023, Amazon launched RXPass. This is a prescription drug delivery service. U.S. Amazon Prime members can pay a $5 monthly fee. This gives them access to 60 common medications. The service started right away in most states. People on government healthcare programs like Medicare cannot use RXPass.

Amazon's Other Companies (Subsidiaries)

Amazon owns over 100 other companies. Some of these are Amazon Web Services, Audible, Goodreads, IMDb, One Medical, Twitch, Zappos, and Zoox.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is an Amazon company. It provides cloud computing services. These services are available to individuals, companies, and governments. You pay for what you use. AWS offers computing power and software tools through its server farms. As of 2021, AWS had 33% of the cloud infrastructure market. Its main competitors are Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud.

Audible

Audible sells and produces spoken audio content. This includes digital audiobooks, radio shows, and audio versions of magazines. Audible Studios, its production part, is the world's largest producer of downloadable audiobooks. Amazon bought Audible in March 2008 for about $300 million.

Goodreads

Goodreads is a website for book lovers. It was started in 2006 by Otis Chandler and Elizabeth Khuri. On Goodreads, you can search a huge database of books and reviews. Users can create lists of books they own or have read. They can also rate, review, and discuss books. You can also join groups to talk about books. Amazon bought Goodreads in March 2013.

Ring

Ring is a home automation company. Jamie Siminoff founded it in 2013. It is best known for its WiFi smart doorbells. Ring also makes other security cameras. Amazon bought Ring for $1 billion in 2018.

Twitch

Twitch at the Electronic Entertainment Expo

Twitch is a platform for live streaming videos. It is mostly used for video gaming content. Amazon bought Twitch in August 2014 for $970 million. Twitch grew very fast because of major esports competitions. Some have called it "the ESPN of esports." As of 2015, Twitch had over 1.5 million streamers and 100 million viewers each month.

Whole Foods Market

Whole Foods Market store in Ann Arbor, Michigan

Whole Foods Market is an American supermarket chain. It only sells foods without artificial preservatives, colors, flavors, sweeteners, or hydrogenated fats. Amazon bought Whole Foods for $13.7 billion in August 2017.

Other Amazon Companies

Here are some other companies owned by Amazon:

• A9.com: This company focuses on new technology. It has been part of Amazon since 2003.
• Amazon Academy: Launched in 2021 by Amazon India. It is an online learning platform. It helps engineering students prepare for exams like the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE).
• Amazon Maritime: This company helps Amazon manage its shipments from China to the United States.
• Amazon Pharmacy: An online service for prescription drugs. It started in November 2020. Prime members can get discounts on medications.
• Annapurna Labs: An Israel-based microelectronics company. Amazon Web Services bought it in 2015.
• Brilliance Audio: An audiobook publisher founded in 1984. Amazon bought it in 2007. It still works as an independent company.
• ComiXology: A digital comics platform. It has over 200 million comic downloads. Amazon bought it in 2014.
• CreateSpace: This company helps independent creators publish their own books, films, and music. It joined Amazon in 2009.
• Eero: An electronics company that makes mesh-networking Wifi devices. Amazon bought Eero in 2019 for $97 million.
• Health Navigator: A startup that develops tools for online health services. Amazon bought it in 2019. It is part of Amazon Care, Amazon's employee healthcare service.
• Junglee: An old online shopping service by Amazon in India. It allowed customers to search for products from many online and offline stores. Amazon bought Junglee in 1998. The website Junglee.com closed in 2017.
• Kuiper Systems: An Amazon company planning to launch over 3,000 satellites. These satellites will provide internet from space.
• Lab126: This company develops electronics like the Kindle. It became an Amazon company in 2004.
• Shelfari: A website where people could share and discuss books. Amazon bought it in 2008. It merged with Goodreads in 2016.
• Souq: The largest e-commerce platform in the Middle East. Amazon bought Souq.com in 2017 for $580 million. It was later rebranded as Amazon.

Amazon also invests in renewable energy. It plans to grow in Canada by investing in a new plant in Alberta.

How Amazon Works: Operations

Delivering Your Packages

Amazon Transportation Services truck at an Amazon Logistics delivery station

Amazon uses many ways to deliver packages. Amazon's own delivery services include:

• Amazon Air: This is a cargo airline for large shipments. The final delivery is done by other Amazon services or the US Postal Service.

Amazon delivery station in La Crosse by the La Crosse airport

• Amazon Flex: This is a smartphone app. It lets individuals deliver packages using their own cars. They are independent contractors. Deliveries can be for Prime Now (very fast), Amazon Fresh groceries, or regular Amazon.com orders.
• Amazon Logistics: Amazon works with small businesses called "Delivery Service Partners." These businesses deliver packages to customers. Each business has about 20-40 Amazon-branded vans. Their employees wear Amazon uniforms. This service operates in the U.S., Canada, and parts of Europe.
• Amazon Prime Air: This is an experimental drone delivery service. It delivers packages by drones to Amazon Prime members in certain cities.

Amazon directly hires people to work in its warehouses and delivery stations. As of December 2020, it does not hire delivery drivers as employees.

In 2020, Amazon's own services delivered 56% of packages in the U.S. The US Postal Service delivered 30%, and UPS delivered 14%. In April 2021, Amazon said it increased its own delivery capacity by 50% in one year.

How Amazon Stores and Ships Products

Amazon started its delivery network in 1997. It had two fulfillment centers. These were in Seattle and New Castle, Delaware. Amazon has different types of facilities. These include fulfillment centers, sortation centers, and delivery stations. There are 75 fulfillment centers and 25 sortation centers. They have over 125,000 employees.

Employees do five main tasks:

• Unpacking and checking new products.
• Storing products and recording where they are.
• Picking products for individual orders.
• Sorting and packing orders.
• Shipping packages.

Computers play a big role. They record where goods are and plan routes for pickers. Employees use hand-held computers that talk to the main computer. Some warehouses use robots built by Amazon Robotics.

In 2006, Amazon launched "FBA" (Fulfillment By Amazon). This program helps small sellers. Amazon handles their product storage, packing, and shipping.

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  Amazon.fr fulfillment center in Lauwin-Planque, France

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  Amazon.es fulfillment center in San Fernando de Henares, Spain

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  Amazon.co.uk fulfillment center in Glenrothes, Scotland, UK

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  Amazon.de fulfillment center in Graben, Germany

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  Amazon.co.jp fulfillment center in Ichikawa, Japan

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  Amazon fulfillment center in Macon, Georgia, US

Amazon's Leadership and Money

Who Leads Amazon? (Board of Directors)

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in 2016

As of June 2022, Amazon's board of directors included:

• Jeff Bezos, executive chairman
• Andy Jassy, president and CEO
• Keith B. Alexander, CEO of IronNet Cybersecurity
• Edith W. Cooper, co-founder of Medley
• Jamie Gorelick, partner at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr
• Daniel P. Huttenlocher, dean at MIT
• Judy McGrath, former CEO of MTV Networks
• Indra Nooyi, former CEO of PepsiCo
• Jon Rubinstein, former chairman and CEO of Palm, Inc.
• Patty Stonesifer, president and CEO of Martha's Table
• Wendell P. Weeks, chairman, president and CEO of Corning Inc.

Who Owns Amazon?

The 10 largest owners of Amazon shares in early 2024 were:

How Amazon Makes Money (Finances)

Amazon.com mainly makes money from selling products. It also takes a small percentage of sales from third-party sellers. Companies can also pay to advertise their products on Amazon. As of 2018, Amazon.com was the eighth largest U.S. company by total money earned. In 2023, Forbes ranked Amazon 36th globally.

For 2021, Amazon reported earnings of $33.36 billion. Its total money earned was $469.82 billion. This was a 21.7% increase from the year before. Since 2007, Amazon's sales have grown a lot. This is because the company keeps expanding its business.

Amazon's total value went over $1 trillion again in early 2020. This happened after it announced its strong results for late 2019.

See also

In Spanish: Amazon para niños