Amazon is one of the greatest companies on the planet.
From a standing start in 1994, Jeff Bezos founded the company in his garage.
A little more than two decades later, Bezos is one of the richest people in the world…
And Amazon dominates e-commerce and cloud computing.
The driving force behind Amazon is Bezos’ obsession with customers.
If you have ever ordered from Amazon, you know what I’m talking about.
The site offers a huge selection, customer reviews, one-click ordering…
And if you’re a Prime member, which is close to half the U.S. population…
You get your order shipped free in two days or less.
Bezos built Amazon with its customers.
They built a “perpetual customer engine” — the belief that the customers must always come first.
Bezos’ mantra for the past 20+ years is: What’s good for customers is good for shareholders.
And let me tell you — THAT proved to be the understatement of the century.
Since its IPO in 1997, shares of Amazon could’ve multiplied an investment over 1,300X…
Enough to turn a $1,000 investment into more than $1.3 million.
Of course, that’s a truly exceptional gain … from one of the most successful businesses of our lifetimes.
But it shows what’s possible when a company is laser-focused on the customer.
He was laser-focused on the three things customers want most: price, selection and convenience.
Now, I’ve found what could be the next Amazon. It’s currently 30X SMALLER than Amazon. But it has the best perpetual customer engine of today.
Let me share with you why that’s so important…
Gold Standard
Amazon started in 1994 as an online bookstore.
Jeff Bezos working on his “desk” in his garage.
But soon, Bezos would get emails from customers asking if he’d consider selling CDs … DVDs … and electronics.
Instead of ignoring the idea — he made it happen.
Amazon was constantly innovating to improve the customer experience.
In 1995, Bezos allowed customers to post their own product reviews … even negative ones. This helped create a “community of trust” in the products Amazon sold.
And I have to admit — when I’m looking for a particular item — the first thing I do is scroll down and see what other customers have to say about it.
Amazon is a part of our lives — because Bezos was obsessed with creating an incredible customer experience.
I’ve been a customer of Amazon since March 10, 1998 … more than 25 years ago.
In fact, I know the very first product I ever bought on Amazon.
It was the book Ronald Reagan: How an Ordinary Man Became an Extraordinary Leader.
Amazon is the gold standard when it comes to creating the perpetual customer engine.
And when I invest — that’s what I want to know … that I’m partnering with a business that is obsessed with its customers…
Customers First
If a company doesn’t have a perpetual customer engine — I don’t even bother looking at it — I’m not interested.
Now, I’m NOT talking about customer service. Every company on the planet says it puts customers first — but it’s often a bunch of hot air.
True customer OBSESSION is more than a catchphrase on a website…
It must be baked into the very DNA of the company from day one.
And when I invest…
I want to see companies that think of their customers as partners … and make it so easy and so effortless to buy their products…
Customers would never dream of doing business anywhere else.
And that turns the business into a finely tuned machine that generates an endless flow of customers…
Who develop a nearly unbreakable bond with the company … and its products — and KEEP coming back again and again.
When you find a company like that…
Hold on tight — because shareholders can make absolute fortunes.
It sets off a nearly unstoppable chain reaction… That sends share prices soaring.
The Next Amazon: Small Company … HUGE Advantage
One company I’ve been researching is doing something SO UNIQUE … and so groundbreaking…
Even Amazon doesn’t want to compete against it.
How could any company beat out one of the greatest, most disruptive businesses of ALL time?
Well — it all has to do with what this company’s doing … and how they’re doing it.
In fact, its approach is so innovative…
Even IF Amazon wanted to compete — it would need to fundamentally alter its entire business to do so.
And from where I’m standing, that gives this small company a huge advantage.
And that’s exactly why I’m hosting a big event next Thursday — The Perpetual Customer Engine…
And in preparation for the event, I’m sharing stories of some of the greatest companies in the world…
Businesses that were ALL driven by an obsession with customers.
All you have to do to get this special content is sign up for my event here. And then tune in next Thursday.
See you then!
Regards,
Founder, Alpha Investor
$33 Trillion in the Hole
We hit a milestone this week.
The national debt hit $33 trillion for the first time. At the end of fiscal year 2022, the national debt was “only” $30.9 trillion. But hey, what’s another $2.1 trillion among friends?
Maybe I’m a glutton for punishment, but let’s take a look at the past century. This data comes right off the U.S. Treasury’s website: straight from the horse’s mouth.
What’s most striking to me is that it really wasn’t like this before. Our debt spiked during World War II, which is forgivable. We were fighting a two-front war against Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan for the future of human civilization. I don’t think any reasonable person would fault us for borrowing heavily to rid the world of Hitler.
A 100 Years of Debt
(From the U.S. Treasury.)
And after the war, we managed to keep the debt load stable for nearly four decades. We managed to finance the Interstate Highway System, the NASA space program, the Korean and Vietnam Wars and even Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society programs … all without going on a debt-fueled bender.
I’m not suggesting that all of those were a great use of money, by the way. Yet even allowing for a “normal” amount of waste, we somehow managed to live within our means (more or less).
And then around 1982, it all fell apart. We had a brief moment of sanity in the late 1990s when we actually started chipping away at the debt. But for roughly 40 years now, debt has been going parabolic.
I don’t know exactly when this party ends. Japan’s debts amount to around 220% of the country’s GDP, and the country hasn’t melted down yet. In the United States, that number is closer to 120% of GDP.
But if you were hoping for any relief from debt ceiling standoffs or government shutdowns … well, don’t hold your breath. That’s just the new normal now.
One conclusion I would reach is this: We’re going to need to focus our investments in the areas best positioned to grow.
A rising tide lifts all boats, and trillions of dollars of federal money sloshing into the economy has a way of pushing all (or at least most) assets higher. That flood of government dollars will slow in the years ahead.
It already is. We’re not going to have that rising tide pushing everything higher.
Like Charles Mizrahi told you today, his research has led him to the “next Amazon” to invest in. It’s possibly even more disruptive than the great commercial giant.
And that’s the kind of edge you want in this market.
If you want to learn more about this company and why he thinks it’s set to innovate and grow even more explosively than Amazon, sign up here for his new event!
Regards,
Charles Sizemore
Chief Editor, The Banyan Edge