Growing new businesses at scale takes discipline
“At Amazon’s current scale, planting seeds that will grow into meaningful new businesses takes some discipline, a bit of patience, and a nurturing culture.”
Investing
Jeff Bezos's 2006 letter to Amazon shareholders, one of the letters in Day 1: The Amazon Shareholder Letters, 1997–2020.
Supporting small bets as competitive advantage
“In my view, Amazon’s culture is unusually supportive of small businesses with big potential, and I believe that’s a source of competitive advantage.”
New businesses are not expected to start large
“The culture demands that these new businesses be high potential and that they be innovative and differentiated, but it does not demand that they be large on the day that they are born.”
Three to seven years to matter
“In our experience, if a new business enjoys runaway success, it can only begin to be meaningful to the overall company economics in something like three to seven years.”
Choosy and patient despite fallible choices
“We won’t always choose right, and we won’t always succeed. But we will be choosy, and we will work hard and patiently.”