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Globe and Mail
34 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
7 Things to Know About Amazon -- Some May Surprise You
Key Points Amazon is one of Earth's biggest employers. Interestingly, "Amazon" was not its original name. The company is home to a wide range of businesses. 10 stocks we like better than Amazon › No matter how well we may think we know a company, there are still likely to be things about it that can surprise -- or amuse -- us. For example, one of the two brothers who founded Domino's Pizza traded his share of the company to the other brother for a used Volkswagen Beetle. Here's a look at Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) and some interesting things about it which you might not know. 1. Its logo has a message Check out the Amazon logo, and you'll see an arrow under the word "Amazon." You might not think much of it, but upon closer inspection, you'll see that it's connecting the letters A and Z -- reflecting the fact that Amazon's sells everything from A to Z. 2. Its name wasn't always Amazon When Amazon was founded in 1994, its name was Cadabra, as in abracadabra. It was soon decided that the name, while whimsical, was sometimes misheard as "cadaver." Founder Jeff Bezos started searching for a new name and wanted one that began with "A" -- so that it would appear early in lists -- and he settled on the name of the world's longest river. 3. It's a major employer Many investors strongly favor companies with capital-light business models over capital-intensive ones -- such as airlines and railroads. Airbnb, for example, is quite capital-light, needing no stores, carrying no inventory, etc. As an e-commerce giant, you might assume that Amazon is capital light, too, as, unlike Walmart, it doesn't have thousands of stores across the country. It's still a major employer, though, as it employs gobs of people in its distribution centers as well as drivers for deliveries. As of the end of 2024, Amazon employed about 1,556,000 full-time and part-time employees -- which doesn't even include independent contractors and temporary workers. That's enough to make it the world's second-largest employer, per 4. Its big numbers are really big Consider this: While most companies sport market capitalizations in the millions or billions, Amazon is in elite company with a market cap in the trillions -- $2.45 trillion, recently. It's also one of the " Magnificent Seven" stocks, along with Apple, (Google parent) Alphabet, (Facebook parent) Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla. The company rakes in some $650 billion annually -- and keeps about 10% of that as net profit. Numbers like that have really helped the company grow -- by an annual average rate of 32% since its initial public offering (IPO) in May 1997. That's enough to turn an investment of $10,000 into close to $26 million! If you'd bought just one share at the IPO, thanks to various stock splits, you'd now own 220 shares, and your initial $18 investment would be worth more than $50,000. Meanwhile, founder Jeff Bezos was recently the third-richest person in the world, per Forbes -- with a net worth of about $244 billion. 5. Its brand name is very valuable Various companies assess the value of global brands regularly, and per Brandirectory, Amazon is the fourth-most-valuable brand in the world, after Apple, Microsoft, and Google. Its brand value is listed as $356 billion. 6. It makes more on services than products We tend to think of Amazon as a massive online retailer, which it certainly is. But it's also a major operator in the cloud computing realm, with its leading Amazon Web Services (AWS). In the company's first quarter, 59% of its revenue came from services. (It's worth noting that AWS's lead in market share has been shrinking recently.) 7. Amazon is much more than a marketplace and more than a cloud platform Amazon is home to lots of different businesses and brands -- which recently included Whole Foods Market, shoe retailer Goodreads, Twitch, Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM), and Audible. It also makes and sells devices under the Alexa, Kindle, Fire, Ring, and Blink names, and features a host of services under its Amazon Prime umbrella, including Prime Video and Prime Music. Then there's One Medical, with which Amazon has expanded into healthcare (along with other operations such as PillPack), and Zoox, which is a self-driving vehicle start-up. Amazon also bought the Kiva Systems robotics company, and is using its robots in its distribution centers. Amazon has plenty of cash on hand, so stay tuned for further investments and expansions. These are just some of many fascinating things to know about Amazon. If you're thinking of investing in Amazon or are already a shareholder, it can be helpful to learn all you can about the company. Should you invest $1,000 in Amazon right now? Before you buy stock in Amazon, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Amazon wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $624,823!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,064,820!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,019% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 178% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 29, 2025 Selena Maranjian has positions in Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Airbnb, Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Domino's Pizza, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, Tesla, and Walmart. The Motley Fool recommends Volkswagen Ag and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
CBC
35 minutes ago
- CBC
Portable sauna units worth roughly $75K stolen from owner's lot in Winnipeg
The owner of a Winnipeg sauna company is worried about his family's livelihood and the future of their business after he said three of their mobile units were stolen from a lot ahead of its busiest season for rentals. The mobile saunas, made out of cedar and resembling the shape of a barrel, were picked by a black Dodge Ram, which then drove away from the lot on Archibald Street, Amir Hamed, owner of the Backyard Barrel business, told CBC News. The theft lasted a number of hours with the first barrel seen towed on surveillance footage at around 11 p.m. Friday and the last just after 3 a.m. on Saturday, Hamed said. "I honestly never thought they would get stolen, we even had the wheel locks on them … the back doors were locked," he said. "It's really unfortunate, but we're trying to make the best of it," Hamed said. "They're each worth $25,000, so we have $75,000 roughly missing." Winnipeg police said they received a report about the incident which will be referred to the property crimes unit for a follow-up investigation. The Backyard Barrel business operates five mobile units and Hamed said the two that weren't stolen had been rented out. Hamed had been trying to sell the business to spend more time with his family. He managed to secure a buyer but the deal fell through on Friday and hours later the three mobile units were stolen from his property. While he doesn't think the sale is related to the theft, both happening on the same day is "a lot of stuff to deal with." He is afraid the saunas will be torn apart and sold in pieces. But he remains hopeful the units can be recovered without major damages before September when the demand for mobile units starts to soar as temperature begins to drop. "This is our livelihood and it's going to impact selling it drastically," Hamed said. He is encouraging people to keep an eye for the units, in case they are listed for sale online. They are trademarked and have a tin roof, a wooden stove and a panoramic window.
CBC
2 hours ago
- CBC
Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu eyes new markets, smaller trade delegations
Ottawa's new trade minister says he's looking to sign deals in South America, Southeast Asia, Africa and beyond — and to convince businesses to actually use the trade agreements Canada has already signed. "My primary role as Canada's top salesman is to be out there hustling, opening doors for businesses and accessing new markets," Maninder Sidhu told The Canadian Press. "My phone has been ringing with opportunities because people want to deal with reliable, stable trading partners." Prime Minister Mark Carney has tasked Dominic LeBlanc as the minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade. Sidhu's job focuses on countries other than the U.S. Export Development Canada says Ottawa has 15 free trade agreements covering 51 countries, offering Canadian exporters preferential access to over 1.5 billion consumers. WATCH | Trump increases tariff on Canada to 35%, White House says: Trump increases tariff on Canada to 35%, White House says 3 days ago U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order increasing tariffs on Canadian goods that don't meet the terms of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement to 35 per cent. But Sidhu said Canadian businesses could be doing a lot more to look beyond the U.S., particularly as Washington threatens and imposes a range of tariffs. Four years within Global Affairs Canada Sidhu served four years as a parliamentary secretary in roles reflecting all three branches of Global Affairs Canada: aid, trade and diplomacy. The job saw him represent Canada in trade promotion events in Southeast Asia and security forums in the Caribbean. Before politics, he worked as a customs broker, a job that focuses on navigating red tape and tariffs to secure the best rate for trading goods. Sidhu said he plans to visit Brazil soon as the South American country seeks to revive trade talks that kicked off in 2018 between the Mercosur trade bloc and Canada. Smaller trade delegations His predecessor Mary Ng emphasized large trade missions that took months to plan. The minister would sometimes fill a plane with corporate and business leaders, spending a substantial chunk of time in one or two countries. Sidhu said he is hoping to bring smaller delegations of companies with him on his trips abroad, with a focus on specific sectors, "whether it's South America, Indo-Pacific to Europe, to Africa." "Businesses feel like they're heard, but they're also getting higher-level meetings on the opposite side in the countries that we take them into," he said. Ottawa is navigating its trade ties with China as the two countries work to revive the decades-old Joint Economic and Trade Commission, a forum to sort out trade irritants. China has been roundly accused of engaging in coercive trade practices and of restricting certain commodities or services like tourism during political disagreements with Ottawa. Sidhu said the goal there is to offer "stability" to industry, with an emphasis on "how do we work through those challenges, and how do we make sure that those conversations are facilitated." Sidhu also downplayed the chances of a bilateral trade deal with the United Kingdom. Trade talks collapsed last year over the U.K.'s desire to sell more cheese in Canada and after Britain blocked Canadian hormone-treated beef. Both countries are using a temporary deal put in place after Britain left the European Union, and the U.K. will soon enter a trade bloc that focuses on the Pacific Rim, Sidhu noted. He said Canada would still be open to a full deal. "If U.K. and Canadian businesses already have access on 99 per cent of the items that we trade, then if we're looking at trade agreements, we need to make sure that we're getting the best value for our negotiations," Sidhu said. He also said Canada could consider "sector-specific agreements" with other countries, instead of comprehensive deals that span most industries. "We are getting very creative in how we can open up more doors." Canada-India trade Sidhu did not name specific countries with which Canada might pursue sector-specific agreements. Canada had been looking at a trade agreement with India that would be limited to certain sectors — before Ottawa suspended talks in 2023 following an assassination the RCMP has linked to New Delhi. Ottawa launched security talks with India this spring and agreed to re-establish high commissioners. Sidhu was circumspect when asked when Canada might re-establish trade talks with India. "This is a step-by-step approach," he said, adding that the eventual return of top envoys will help "to carry out those very important conversations." Sidhu said Global Affairs Canada is still sorting out how Carney's decision to cut spending in all departments will affect the trade branch. "It's really going to be a focused approach of where we can make the best impact," Sidhu said. The Business Council of Canada has urged Ottawa to expand the number of trade commissioners, who provide the contacts on the ground for Canadian companies looking for export opportunities. While Sidhu did not say whether Ottawa's cuts will mean fewer trade commissioners, he said he's heard a clear message from chambers of commerce that these positions are extremely valuable. "It comes down to return on investments, what programs are working [and] where can we get the best bang for our buck for Canadian industry and Canadian workers," he said.
