Introduction
H
undreds of millions of customers shop
for products in Amazon’s store. Those
products are sold by many sellers, including
Amazon Retail and nearly 2 million small
and medium-sized businesses that are our
third-party selling partners.
Over 20 years ago, we made the decision to open
our store’s virtual shelves to third-party sellers. At
the time, big-box retailers had been pushing small
businesses out of the retail market. But we made a bet
that bringing selling partners into our store would not
only be a win for customers who want vast product
selection, low prices, and fast delivery, but it would also
be a win for small businesses that want to reach more
customers, increase their revenue and pro its, and
create good jobs. It proved to be a great bet. Today,
products from small and medium-sized businesses
account for more than half of everything sold in our
store.
Our decision kicked off an industry trend that has
resulted in small businesses having a range of options
when deciding how and where to sell their products.
Small businesses now have the opportunity to sell to
customers through the sites of major retailers, their own
sites, third-party-only marketplaces, and through the
top social media and search services. We know sellers
have lots of options, and we work hard to make Amazon
the best partner to help drive their success.
Every day, we see our selling partners provide great
product selection, low prices, and convenience for
customers. That’s why we invested more than $18
billion in selling partner success last year. These
investments included logistics, teams, services,
programs, and tools like Brand Follow and Stores that
allow sellers to connect their brands directly to millions
of customers. Last year, while many other companies
passed along the increased costs of doing business
during the pandemic through surcharges and fee
changes, we absorbed over $5 billion of those costs on
behalf of sellers and have continued investing billions
more this year to help sellers as we all work toward
recovery. These investments help selling partners
quickly launch their business on Amazon, scale and
reach more customers, and establish and build their
brands.
This Small Business Empowerment Report shares more
about our investments in seller success and how our
selling partners are beneting as a result. We continue
to be inspired by our sellers’ entrepreneurial spirit,
resourcefulness, and creativity, especially as we all
persevere through the COVID-19 pandemic.
Our success depends on the success of our selling
partners. Amazon’s work with third-party sellers is one
of the greatest partnership stories in retail. Together,
we make a great team. As always, it’s Day 1 for us as
we continue to listen to our selling partners and invent
on their behalf.
—Dave Clark, CEO,
Amazon Worldwide Consumer
2 2021 SMALL BUSINESS EMPOWERMENT REPORT