Amazon, “The Blob” conglomerate. Does anyone remember that movie or did I just show my age? The Blob was a gelatinous being that engulfed everything that it touched. Amazon, much like the blob, engulfs and sells everything that it touches. This is not a knock on Amazon, of which I am a Prime member, it’s worth the money, but it shows how fast you now have to move not to be shelved by Amazon.

Amazon started as an online book store and has developed into the most recognizable store on earth. I’ll bet you a million dollars that when Space X reaches Mars, there will be an Amazon box there, with newest retro spacesuit. I love their ingenuity and willingness not to be satisfied with the status quo. I’m a fan of this company. So how do you keep up with such a fast moving, ever engulfing blob conglomerate? How do I know, I write blogs, I don’t destroy blobs. But if I had to guess, the first thing I would do is make sure that I can’t become obsolete.

Let’s take Toy’s R Us for instance. I’m almost certain that part of the reason that Mr. Us, the sweet lovable giraffe that owned Toy’s R Us (not really, they were owned by

two capital venture companies and real estate venture company) is now living back in the Amazon, ironic, and looking out for tigers and such is that because they didn’t have anything that was theirs except those stores. If the giraffe had decided to venture out past its comfort zone and decided to stick its neck out and actually produced some high quality toys, like an xbox or whatever is “the toy” today, with their recognizable name, they would have survived, probably selling it on amazon, but still around to make a comeback. Instead, it decided, like everyone else that didn’t embrace innovation, to wait out the fad of home delivery by a giant forest in South America and then reign supreme again as king of the toy industry.

Amazon rents and sells movies, decided that selling wasn’t enough and started making them as well. Amazon sells food online (stuff that doesn’t have to be refrigerated), decided that selling it online wasn’t enough and made super- supermarkets (with refrigerated stuff). Why can Amazon do this, what are they exploiting? The other guys greed and lack of ease, that’s what. Amazon takes less of a profit but sells tons more, compensating for the other guys greed and making a profit by bulk, like Costco paper towels, in bulk, except they sell it for the same price or cheaper and go to your house and give it to you.. Amazing, or Amazon. So here comes the other way you can compete, stop wanting your own private jets, probably made by Amazon, and be satisfied with flying commercial first class. Pay your workers more and take less of the share. If Amazon can’t undercut you they can’t eliminate you. And if you are well liked by the public, not the greedy businessman that threatens to take his manufacturing business overseas if we get lippy, then we will buy your product, just let us know that’s what you are doing.

Amazon must have watched Scarface, the line where Frank advises Tony about rule number 1, “Never underestimate the other guys greed” rule number 2 was “never get high on your own supply” but that doesn’t go with this story, either way, knowing how greedy people are was the perfect way to take it all away from them, as long as you are willing to not be.