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23/01/2002
Amazon.com reports profit for the first time
Online bookstore Amazon.com has revealed its first-ever net profit, surpassing even the most optimistic forecasts from analysts.
The company’s fourth quarter results showed the internet retailer made $5 million net for the period – compared with a loss of $545 million only one year earlier. The result even surpassed the prediction of Amazon’s chief executive and founder Jeff Bezos, who had insisted that the fourth quarter would see the firm at least break even on a pro forma basis.
However, extremely good sales over the Christmas period helped Amazon achieve a 20 per cent increase in activity at a time when most US retailers were failing to match their 2001 sales figures.
While Amazon has, up until now, failed to show a profit in the six years since its launch in 1995, the company’s results are being hailed as proof of the workability of Amazon’s business model – and as proof that e-commerce can lead to sustainable success.
It is thought that the key to Amazon’s success lies in the strength of its brand identity, and the company’s decision to diversify into markets beyond the sale of books, via a series of strategic partnerships with other firms who agree to the sale of their goods through the Amazon site. (CL)
The company’s fourth quarter results showed the internet retailer made $5 million net for the period – compared with a loss of $545 million only one year earlier. The result even surpassed the prediction of Amazon’s chief executive and founder Jeff Bezos, who had insisted that the fourth quarter would see the firm at least break even on a pro forma basis.
However, extremely good sales over the Christmas period helped Amazon achieve a 20 per cent increase in activity at a time when most US retailers were failing to match their 2001 sales figures.
While Amazon has, up until now, failed to show a profit in the six years since its launch in 1995, the company’s results are being hailed as proof of the workability of Amazon’s business model – and as proof that e-commerce can lead to sustainable success.
It is thought that the key to Amazon’s success lies in the strength of its brand identity, and the company’s decision to diversify into markets beyond the sale of books, via a series of strategic partnerships with other firms who agree to the sale of their goods through the Amazon site. (CL)
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