# Amazon wants you to start a business to deliver its packages



## Trump Economics (Jul 29, 2015)

If you have $10,000 and want to be your own boss, Amazon has a deal for you.

Starting Thursday, you can apply to start your very own small business, delivering Amazon Prime packages in Amazon (AMZN) branded vans and uniforms.

The company wants to help launch small businesses in the United States dedicated to taking its packages on the last step of their journey: from local Amazon sorting centers to the customers who ordered them.

It announced the new program on Wednesday at a press event in Seattle.

It's the latest attempt by Amazon to gain greater control of the delivery network at the core of its Prime business, which ships 5 billion packages a year globally.

The announcement follows public criticism of Amazon by President Donald Trump over the company's arrangement with the US Postal Service. Amazon uses the USPS for an estimated 40% of its last-mile deliveries, paying bulk pricing. Trump has said he thinks it is a bad deal for the government.

Amazon's new "Delivery Service Partners" and their staff members won't be employed by the tech company. The initial $10,000 costs will go to helping them start an independent business that has to begin with at least five delivery vans and ramp up to 20 vans over an undisclosed period of time.

Amazon has negotiated discounts for approved entrepreneurs, including lower rates on insurance, fuel and leases for Amazon branded vans that have been customized inside for package delivery. It's also setting aside $1 million to specifically recruit and help military veterans become partners.

The partner companies can only deliver Amazon packages from the branded vans, but they're allowed to add their own non-Prime vehicles and pick up work for other companies.

The business owners will be able to make as much as $300,000 a year in profit running a full-sized fleet of 40 vans and managing 100 employees, according to Amazon. They'll be plugged into Amazon's software, which will determine where the drivers go.

Drivers will be full-time workers instead of contractors, and Amazon will require business owners to give them paid time off and other benefits. Amazon would not say if it was requesting a set minimum wage for the drivers.

"You choose the pace at which you want to grow, and you get an opportunity to be a business leader in your community," Dave Clark, the senior vice president of Amazon's worldwide operations, told CNNMoney. "Having that kind of control and that kind of income opportunity for your family is something that many people are going to love and want to be a part of."

The company has been building up its own fleet of 7,000 of trucks and 40 airplanes to cover the "middle mile" of delivery. They haul goods between shipping centers and bear Amazon logos, but don't show up at customers' doorsteps.

At the moment, that step is mostly handled by one of the many third-parties the company works with, such as FedEx (FDX), United Parcel Service (UPS), the USPS and individual on-demand workers who use their personal cars as part of the "Flex" program.

Clark said that the new program will supplement Amazon's existing shipping setups, and that all its usual relationships with partners, including the USPS, will remain intact.

"This is a huge market segment, [with] the size of the transportation space and the growth in the parcel industry. I think there's more than enough for everybody," he said.

Amazon plans to bring on board hundreds of these new small businesses over the next year, according to Clark.

"This program signals that Amazon would like to ramp up its last-mile logistics operation more quickly," said Colin Sebastian, an analyst at Baird.

While they're probably safe in the short term, other delivery companies could be affected in the longer term as Amazon builds out its own comprehensive logistics operation, according to Sebastian.

Using workers who are closely connected to Amazon and can represent it but who are not actual Amazon employees hits a sweet spot for the company.

By not relying entirely on partners like FedEx and USPS, Amazon gets more control over the customer experience, better customer service and greater capacity to make more next-day and same-day deliveries, Sebastian said.

At the same time, it's able to avoid the less desirable parts of owning and running its own delivery fleets, like the burden of acquiring and operating vehicles and managing employees.

http://money.cnn.com/2018/06/28/technology/amazon-delivery-partners/index.html


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## Mista T (Aug 16, 2017)

Call me skeptical


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## heynow321 (Sep 3, 2015)

Mista T said:


> Call me skeptical


I would place amazon and boober at the same level of trustworthiness


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## DJWolford (Aug 6, 2017)

if the proposition of a good profit is a very realistic reality.

this is a great thing


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## 7Miles (Dec 17, 2014)

According to Amazon, I can make UP TO $300K a year if I employ 100 employees and have 40 vans.

So I have to employ all those people with pregnancy, hurt on the job and all kind of other issues? Thanks, Amazon ! Was waiting my whole life for that. But I think if I already employ 100 employees, it’ll be way more lucrative than up to 300 K


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## heynow321 (Sep 3, 2015)

just like with boober you can make UP TO $40 an hour!

except with amazon you'll just need an HR department, a compliance department, serious capitol investments, maintenance costs, fleet management experts, finance and accounting people, etc. 

yeah......you'll be making $300k in no time! lol idiots

I would like to see the exact calculations, numbers, and assumptions about interest rates, depreciation, and general costs that amazon used to arrive at that number. 

PRO TIP: they probably exaggerated/lied about the numbers to make it seem appealing to suckers....err I mean you.


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## Rakos (Sep 2, 2014)




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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

nowhere in the article does it say just who pays who


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## just_me (Feb 20, 2017)

7Miles said:


> According to Amazon, I can make UP TO $300K a year if I employ 100 employees and have 40 vans.
> 
> So I have to employ all those people with pregnancy, hurt on the job and all kind of other issues? Thanks, Amazon ! Was waiting my whole life for that. But I think if I already employ 100 employees, it'll be way more lucrative than up to 300 K


Yup, that got me wondering too. Sounds like there will be a lot of politics with Amazon playing one contractor against the other in addition to Amazon being the boss of how you run your quote: ''company''; end quote. They've already set a ceiling to what you can make and it looks like they've itemized how your company will look and be run, right down to how many vans, employees, and uniforms you will have. Amazon is certainly not going to let anyone get too big since they're doing this to replace their reliance on the Post Office, FedEx, and UPS, in spite what they say in the article. And, I can see them now: ''if we hear one report of harassment, blah, blah, blah - you and your employees will have to under go remedial training at your expense''. But, there are some who are going to try this - with $$$$ signs in their eyes.

The scary thing: Amazon is big enough to fight back against the Post Office, FedEx, and UPS. At one time in this country, there was a company called Standard Oil (J.D. Rockefeller) who fought back against the railroads - and ended up telling them 'this is what we'll pay you'' - rather than the railroads setting their price. Same thing as far as I can tell. ~ Just Me (rant over).


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## Trump Economics (Jul 29, 2015)

Mista T said:


> Call me skeptical


Skeptical


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## Rex8976 (Nov 11, 2014)

Just getting drivers to report mechanical issues on YOUR 40 vehicles...$$$$$$$$$$


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## bsliv (Mar 1, 2016)

$300,000 per year for 40 vehicles. That's $7500 per vehicle per year. That's $20.55 income per vehicle per day if working 365 days per year.


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

How 


Trump Economics said:


> View attachment 239706
> 
> 
> If you have $10,000 and want to be your own boss, Amazon has a deal for you.
> ...


 HOW MUCH
WILL THEY GARUNTEE ME
if i agree to purchase a jet !!!????

I will paint it Amazon Colors.

It will only Occasionally stop in Columbia . . . .


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## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

Amazon wants you to deliver packages, Walmart wants you to deliver groceries and Uber wants you to deliver people. Pretty soon health care cost will be so expensive that Welfare is going to want you to deliver babies.


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

SEAL Team 5 said:


> Amazon wants you to deliver packages, Walmart wants you to deliver groceries and Uber wants you to deliver people. Pretty soon health care cost will be so expensive that Welfare is going to want you to deliver babies.


Humming " Back to the Land"- Ursa Major.


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## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

Now I hope these Uber drivers remember the phrase "up to".

*Make up to $90,000 a year being an Uber driver.

Profit up to $300,000 a year delivering for Amazon.
*
Don't forget that $15,000 a year falls into the category of up to $90k or even $300k a year.


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## THE MAN! (Feb 13, 2015)

bsliv said:


> $300,000 per year for 40 vehicles. That's $7500 per vehicle per year. That's $20.55 income per vehicle per day if working 365 days per year.


Sounds like Uber Economics?

Never again will I get into another contractor driving scheme!


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## bsliv (Mar 1, 2016)

THE MAN! said:


> Sounds like Uber Economics?
> 
> Never again will I get into another contractor driving scheme!


You mean you can't buy a van, hire a driver, and keep the van running on $20/day?


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## jocker12 (May 11, 2017)

*Naked Capitalism Readers Issue Scam Alert For Amazon's "Become Our Freight Shipper" Scheme*


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## 7Miles (Dec 17, 2014)

This will never work as designed simply because they want you to deal with 100 human beings and their issues so they don’t have to. You dealing with 40 vans so they don’t have to.
Hell on wheels.
But if they are smart , they can do it Uber way : pay way too much for first time franchises. Make them happy as you can make. Pay them a million if you must, make them do the word of the mouth thing. Then once they have enough people invested in those vans and employees, cut pay 40% and find a way to say it’s for their own good.

7-11 does same thing to own franchisees. 7-11 franchise owner only makes very small amount , something like 5% from gross sales after all expenses. 7-11 also preys on people from Pakistan, countries like that who know no better . But soon they find out that the only way to make money is to work themselves instead of hiring someone. That’s why you see so many foreigners always working at 7-11.
Many of them can’t wait to sell franchise so they just work there for $10 per hour with no headaches.


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## UberProphet? (Dec 24, 2014)

7Miles said:


> 7-11 does same thing to own franchisees. 7-11 franchise owner only makes very small amount , something like 5% from gross sales after all expenses. 7-11 also preys on people from Pakistan, countries like that who know no better . But soon they find out that the only way to make money is to work themselves instead of hiring someone. That's why you see so many foreigners always working at 7-11.
> Many of them can't wait to sell franchise so they just work there for $10 per hour with no headaches.


I'll take 5% of $2,000,000 per year. That's $100,000.

Then, as part of the expenses that you write off, you pay yourself 8 hours a day as manager for $30,000 and 4 more hours as clerk for another $10,000 and write off your family minivan as a "delivery vehicle." Free beer, wine, chips and soda occasionally turn up in your car from suppliers.

Hard work, long hours, great money. Now all you have to do is convince your customers that you are a stupid person from Pakistan so they will keep paying $2.49 for a two liter of coke that Walmart sells for $1.29.


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## LADriver (Aug 28, 2014)

7Miles said:


> According to Amazon, I can make UP TO $300K a year if I employ 100 employees and have 40 vans.
> 
> So I have to employ all those people with pregnancy, hurt on the job and all kind of other issues? Thanks, Amazon ! Was waiting my whole life for that. But I think if I already employ 100 employees, it'll be way more lucrative than up to 300 K


A major limousine service with 100 employees can be worth about $50 million world wide on the open market. Their yearly revenue is in the $4 million range.


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## Trump Economics (Jul 29, 2015)

SEAL Team 5 said:


> Amazon wants you to deliver packages, Walmart wants you to deliver groceries and Uber wants you to deliver people. Pretty soon health care cost will be so expensive that Welfare is going to want you to deliver babies.


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## njn (Jan 23, 2016)

Looks like Flex isn't working out too well.


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## Rakos (Sep 2, 2014)

njn said:


> Looks like Flex isn't working out too well.


Maybe it was a bit too flex-able...8>O

Rakos


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## jonhjax (Jun 24, 2016)

40 vans for $300,000? That's $7500 per van. 100 employees? That's $3,000 per employee. I hope that's net profit. You're looking at well over a $1milion initial investment just in equipment that's not going to last more than a few years. Then another reinvestment and another and another. I hope whoever does this keeps their credit rating very very good, because the business will probably have to borrow money on a recurring basis.


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## LADriver (Aug 28, 2014)

jonhjax said:


> 40 vans for $300,000? That's $7500 per van. 100 employees? That's $3,000 per employee. I hope that's net profit. You're looking at well over a $1milion initial investment just in equipment that's not going to last more than a few years. Then another reinvestment and another and another. I hope whoever does this keeps their credit rating very very good, because the business will probably have to borrow money on a recurring basis.


These Amazon numbers are way off base. Any MBA worth his or her weight can easily deduce this math problem to know that 100 employees should be generating $10 million in gross yearly revenue. $300,000? That's MONTHLY revenue to a major limousine service ($10,000 per day for 30 days). Not counting their world-wide affiliate revenue which could easily double that.


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## dirtylee (Sep 2, 2015)

I am almost sure a 40 car fleet of 100 UberX drivers can make more...


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## Rex8976 (Nov 11, 2014)

jonhjax said:


> 40 vans for $300,000? That's $7500 per van. 100 employees? That's $3,000 per employee. I hope that's net profit. You're looking at well over a $1milion initial investment just in equipment that's not going to last more than a few years. Then another reinvestment and another and another. I hope whoever does this keeps their credit rating very very good, because the business will probably have to borrow money on a recurring basis.


This presumes Amazon doesn't Uber the living daylights out of you (as mentioned previously.)


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## wontgetfooledagain (Jul 3, 2018)

This sounds like Uber when they used to advertise drivers making $90k per year.

Also, logistics are tricky. Its taken decades for UPS & FedEx to optimize sorting, tracking, calculating the shortest routes, etc. Rookie companies will be real inefficient.


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## Rex8976 (Nov 11, 2014)

wontgetfooledagain said:


> This sounds like Uber when they used to advertise drivers making $90k per year.
> 
> Also, logistics are tricky. Its taken decades for UPS & FedEx to optimize sorting, tracking, calculating the shortest routes, etc. Rookie companies will be real inefficient.


Not to mention in competition with _each other_...just as King Bezos wants it.

Keep the ants hungry and fighting among themselves and they don't have time to revolt.

Sound familiar?


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## SLuz (Oct 20, 2016)

wontgetfooledagain said:


> This sounds like Uber when they used to advertise drivers making $90k per year.
> 
> Also, logistics are tricky. Its taken decades for UPS & FedEx to optimize sorting, tracking, calculating the shortest routes, etc. Rookie companies will be real inefficient.


"Hey Bezoz what are we gonna do with all these delivery vans when our drone delivery system takes over?"


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## Driftinginn (Mar 22, 2017)

njn said:


> Looks like Flex isn't working out too well.


With the degree of control that Amazon currently has over the "independent operators" it is is only a matter of time before they are considered employees. This new way will allow Amazon to exploit these new businesses as they choose. The new delivery businesses will have all the transportation costs and employee liability and Amazon gets its mechanise to the customer with little to no liability at all. Very shrewd. Just when you thought that Uber and lyft were the front runner in the race to the bottom, Amazon takes it even lower.... unbelievable


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