"Deal Gives Amazon a Diaper Strategy"

Gracie Konopka

Amazon.com is a super website that sells everything from posters to gardening tools. Virtually anything and everything can be found on this website, and they are still constantly trying to expand themselves. Back in July 2009 Amazon purchased the large online shoe company, Zappos.com. This was a big merge for them at the reasonable price of $928 Million. Amazon adopted Zappos form instead of revamping everything to make the transition easier. This obviously greatly improves Amazon’s overall value, while also excluding their competition. By purchasing Zappos, Amazon cornered the online shoe market. This was an extremely intelligent move by Amazon because they completely improve their company without putting in all of the work. Amazon does not have to worry about their competition once the purchase is official.

Currently Amazon is offering Diapers.com about $500 million to purchase them. Amazon is looking and hoping for situation similar to the Zappos takeover. With the exception of Zappos, Amazon has been a company known for building from the bottom up. The company traditionally uses many different marketing strategies and price cuts to beat out their competition. If the sell goes through, Amazon would yet again corner the market for online diapers with the purchase of Diapers.com. Amazon would not change much with Diapers.com to help keep it the same for its old users. This yet again would make the transition smoother for the users of both websites. Amazon has already started prepping for the takeover by creating Amazon Mom which is a part of the website that offers deals on products most mother need. Although many users of the two websites are disappointed because some of their bargains will disappear if these companies merge. Overall this should be a quick and easy change for everyone involved, and would leave Amazon with even more power over the internet market.

Although it seems that Amazon is taking the easy way out, this seems to be the best and quickest way for the company to rise even more. Amazon was traditionally a company that built from the bottom up, but has taken liberties with buying other companies these days. These takeovers is similar to the monopolistic ideals that the United Sates has been based on. Amazon quickly corners the market by buying these companies and continues to grow. Does this change how online shopping will be done? If Amazon continues to buy over online shopping companies, eventually everyone will be buying all their products on one website. Amazon could in the future even corner all online shopping because they could buy all the best companies in their specified market. This could make companies’ goals not to be successful, but to simply be bought out by Amazon. I believe that if Amazon continues they way are going they will be the biggest online super power. If this merge goes smoothly it will only be a matter of time before Amazon looks into more companies to buy. I believe that this merge will be great for Amazon, other online companies though I am not sure.

http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2010/11/08/deal-solves-amazons-diaper-dilemma/?ref=technology

http://www.diapers.com/

http://www.amazon.com/

http://techcrunch.com/2009/07/22/amazon-buys-zappos/