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“The Everything Store” Quotes

I recently read “The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos And The Age of Amazon” by Brad Stone. Below are the quotes I found most interesting. If you like the quotes, please buy the book here.

Everything Store cover“Computer scientist Alan Kay observed that “point of view is worth 80 IQ points.” (20)

“Gelfond says, ‘It’s one thing to have a good idea, but it’s another to have confidence in a person to execute it.’” (42)

“Miller says, ‘Toys are so fad driven, it’s a little like betting on Oscar winners only by looking at movie trailers.’” (85)

“‘There’s only one way out of this predicament,’ Bezos said repeatedly to employees during this time, ‘and that is to invent our way out.’” (196)

“Bezos believed that high margins justified rivals’ investments in research and development and attracted more competition, while low margins attracted customers and were more defensible.” (221)

“‘It’s far better to cannibalize yourself than have someone else do it,’ said Diego Piacentini.” (231)

“Christensen wrote that great companies fail not because they want to avoid disruptive change but because they are reluctant to embrace promising new markets that might undermine their traditional businesses and that do not appear to satisfy their short-term growth requirements.” (234)

“Some of the retailers who sell via the Amazon Marketplace seem to have a schizophrenic relationship with the company, particularly if they have no unique and sustainable selling point, such as an exclusive on a particular product. Amazon closely monitors what they sell, notices any briskly selling items, and often starts selling those products itself. By paying Amazon commissions and helping it source hot products, retailers on the Amazon Marketplace are in effect aiding their most ferocious competitor.” (303)

“‘In a world where consumers had limited choice, you needed to compete for locations,’ says Ross. ‘But in a world where consumers have unlimited choice, you need to compete for attention. And this requires something more than selling other people’s products.’” (304)

“‘We don’t have a single big advantage,’ Bezos once told an old adversary, publisher Tim O’Reilly, back when they were arguing over Amazon protecting its patented 1-Click ordering method from rivals like Barnes & Noble. ‘So we have to weave a rope of many small advantages.’” (341)

Liked the book? Buy it here.

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