Assignment: A complete analysis should include a summary of the case, a SWOT analysis, a financial analysis, identification of strategic issues and challenges, and a strategic plan. You must support your case analysis with at least 3 sources in addition to the textbook.

The case describes the business model of one of the world’s largest e-tailers, Amazon.com, Inc. (Amazon). Amazon had been at the forefront of innovation, adding and refining technology and changing the way customers shopped. It had a sustainable and innovative business model that intensely focused on its long-term growth opportunities as opposed to short-term profit margins. The case discusses the business model innovation at Amazon and how it evolved from just an online bookstore into one of the largest e-commerce platforms in the world where customers could find and discover anything they wanted to buy online in a more convenient way. The case outlines the four pillars of Amazon’s business model — low prices, wide selection, convenience, and customer service. Amazon attracted customers through low prices, prompt delivery, an ever-expanding array of services and products, and exemplary customer service.In 2015, Seattle-based e-commerce giant Amazon.com, Inc.(Amazon) surprised investors by posting an unanticipated second quarterly profit in a row after struggling with profitability the previous year. In the third quarter ended September 30, 2015, Amazon’s revenues increased by 20% to US$23.2 billion, while net income was US $79 million, compared with a net loss of US$437 million in the corresponding quarter of the previous year. The revenue growth was attributed to the company’s rapidly growing cloud-computing business, higher sales in North America, and initiatives to attract more customers. On the back of these unexpected quarterly results, Amazon shares surged, making it the most valuable retailer in the world surpassing Wal-Mart Stores Inc as of July 2015. BUILDING AND EVOLVING THE BUSINESS MODEL Over the years, Amazon had disrupted the online retail industry and transformed itself from an e-commerce player to a powerful digital media platform focused on growth and innovation. It constantly reinvented its business model and found new ways to create value for its customers. According to analysts, Amazon’s business model was innovative because it combined the company’s online retail expertise with its ability to understand the needs of its customers. Amazon moved beyond books to foray into completely new product categories such as e-readers and enterprise cloud computing services. AMAZON’S GROWTH WHEEL In 2001, Bezos and his employees outlined a virtuous cycle called the “Amazon Flywheel”, which they believed powered their business. Bezos once invited well-known author and business consultant Jim Collins (Collins) to participate in Amazon’s executive retreat in 2001 to discuss the company’s future. As part of the discussions, Collins told Bezos and his executives that they had to decide what they were best at. Drawing on Collins’s concept of a flywheel, Bezos and his executives drew their own virtuous circle placing customer experience at the core of Amazon’s flywheel. Internally, it was referred to as Bezos’ napkin diagram as he drew it on a napkin… GROWTH NOW, PROFITS LATER Amazon generated revenues by selling millions of products to customers through its retail website and by charging third party sellers who sold products on Amazon’s website. It also served as a platform for independent publishers to publish books on Kindle with a 35% or 70% royalty option. In addition, Amazon generated revenue from its cloud business by providing web technology infrastructure to developers and enterprises. It followed a high fixed costs and low marginal costs business model. According to Eugene Wei, a former Amazon employee… RESOURCES AND PROCESSES THAT SUPPORT THE STRATEGY Amazon was one of the most innovative companies in the US. From the beginning, it had been at the forefront of innovation, adding and refining technology and changing the way customers shopped. On invention being a second nature at Amazon, Bezos said… CHALLENGES According to industry observers, Amazon over the years had disrupted other online retailers and brick-and-mortar stores and leveraged its e-commerce operations to become a retail Goliath. However, some critics felt that Amazon was too ambitious as it had been growing alarmingly and investing heavily. They felt that the strategy could backfire and that Amazon needed to be selective about the opportunities it pursued as it could not take customers and the competition for granted… THE ROAD AHEAD Going forward, the company planned to launch new digital products and service categories, build more fulfillment centers, power AWS, and expand the Kindle Fire Ecosystem. The company also planned to hire 100,000 people in North America for the holiday season.