Could Atlanta be in the running for second Amazon headquarters? (Pitts: sold, landscape)

[krogerDisco]

Originally Posted by JMatl

Amazon would eat Pittsburgh alive, they couldn't handle it.

Seattle (metro) was a little bit larger than Pittsburgh (metro) when Amazon started. Pittsburgh (city) at it's peak was almost 700,000 and now is around 300,000. It can handle Amazon and it's promise of 50,000 jobs.

[rickms]

Amazon would eat Pittsburgh alive, they couldn't handle it.

Everyone of the remaining cities could handle Amazon.





Easily.

[rickms]

Just pool up Pittsburgh and Raleigh on the passenger App. It does not have many options( Uber and XL) like Atlanta: Uber X, Pool, Select, Black, XL

I'm not sure that I follow. The comment you referenced noted that uber has a research facility in Pittsburgh.


What does that have to do with passenger traffic in Pittsburgh, Raleigh or anywhere else?

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by citidata18

The big difference between Sears and Amazon is that Sears was only a retailer. Amazon, through vertical integration, is now trying to become a big player in virtually every field (you name it: shipping/logistics, health care, film/television production, etc.)

Yes, every company eventually has its peak and decline, but that said, the goal IMO should be for a city to attract these type of high growth companies/industries and leverage them to elevate the city to the point that it's able to prosper without these companies.

Sears was a lot more than just a retailer. For one thing, they pioneered mass marketing through catalog sales. The Sears mail order catalog reached millions of Americans in cities and rural areas.

Sears also had tremendous breadth and vertical integration in many markets. They sold houses, thousands of which still exist in Atlanta and all over the country. Their in-house Craftsman tool line with its 100% replacement guarantee set the standard for decades. Sears sold, delivered and serviced appliances which were manufactured to its own specifications. Likewise with paint, hardware and automotive products. They provided credit to millions, and made massive charitable donations. They were colossal real estate developers. They sold eyeglasses and provided optician services, musical instruments under their own brand, photography services, you name it.

[citidata18]

Originally Posted by arjay57

Sears was a lot more than just a retailer. For one thing, they pioneered mass marketing through catalog sales. The Sears mail order catalog reached millions of Americans in cities and rural areas.

Sears also had tremendous breadth and vertical integration in many markets. They sold houses, thousands of which still exist in Atlanta and all over the country. Their in-house Craftsman tool line with its 100% replacement guarantee set the standard for decades. Sears sold, delivered and serviced appliances which were manufactured to its own specifications. Likewise with paint, hardware and automotive products. They provided credit to millions, and made massive charitable donations. They were colossal real estate developers. They sold eyeglasses and provided optician services, musical instruments under their own brand, photography services, you name it.

Those things are different though.

As you say, most of what you list was sold exclusively through their stores and tied to their retail sales.

Meanwhile, the stuff Amazon's venturing into is not interdependent with each other. What the Washington Post does stands on its own from what Amazon Web Services does, and the health care investment they're planning will have nothing to do with their web services or media side of the business.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by citidata18

Those things are different though.

As you say, most of what you list was sold exclusively through their stores and tied to their retail sales.

Meanwhile, the stuff Amazon's venturing into is not interdependent with each other. What the Washington Post does stands on its own from what Amazon Web Services does, and the health care investment they're planning will have nothing to do with their web services or media side of the business.

His remarks in response to your dismissal of Sears as 'only a retailer', and he made a good point. Over its history, Sears has:

-popularized the concept of catalog sales, particularly in the urban markets
-popularized the concept of affordable prefabricated housing
-popularized the concept of home warranties
-popularized mass marketing of auto repair services, effectively ending the days of the shade-tree mechanic
-offered insurance, brokerage and retail credit services, and was the first major retailer to do so.
-was the first retailer to offer in-house branding of their products

In short, Sears had as much if not more impact on American purchasing habits in the 20th Century as Amazon is having in the 21st.

[citidata18]

Originally Posted by Iconographer

His remarks in response to your dismissal of Sears as 'only a retailer', and he made a good point. Over its history, Sears has:

-popularized the concept of catalog sales, particularly in the urban markets
-popularized the concept of affordable prefabricated housing
-popularized the concept of home warranties
-popularized mass marketing of auto repair services, effectively ending the days of the shade-tree mechanic
-offered insurance, brokerage and retail credit services, and was the first major retailer to do so.
-was the first retailer to offer in-house branding of their products

In short, Sears had as much if not more impact on American purchasing habits in the 20th Century as Amazon is having in the 21st.

No, I understood what he said and I disagree.

Both of you seem to be missing my point, that being Amazon is more than just a retail store (unlike Sears). Every single bullet you listed was centered around the factvthat they're merely a retail store.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by citidata18

Those things are different though.

As you say, most of what you list was sold exclusively through their stores and tied to their retail sales.

Meanwhile, the stuff Amazon's venturing into is not interdependent with each other. What the Washington Post does stands on its own from what Amazon Web Services does, and the health care investment they're planning will have nothing to do with their web services or media side of the business.

Well, times are different and the two companies are obviously not exactly the same.

However, Sears had an incredibly diverse book of business that went far beyond retail and catalog sales. They founded Allstate Insurance, with annual revenues of around $40 billion. They owned Dean Witter brokerage, Sears credit and later the Discover Financial network. As earlier mentioned, Sears' real estate holdings were vast and they built what long reigned as the world's tallest building.

Early on Sears partnered with IBM and developed Prodigy, which by the early 90s became the world's second largest online service. And while Sears did not enter TV production directly, it was a huge player in the advertising world, spending up to $2 billion a year or more. That gave them tremendous clout when it came to what it made onto the air and what didn't.

Unlike Amazon, Sears developed its own major product lines in many fields -- lawn and garden, tools and power equipment, sporting goods, musical instruments, automotive products and much more.

My point is simply that if the air can come of out of a titanic balloon like Sears, it's certainly possible with a company like Amazon. I'm sure Jeff Bezos and the Amazon board would readily acknowledge that.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by arjay57

well, times are different and the two companies are obviously not exactly the same.

However, sears had an incredibly diverse book of business that went far beyond retail and catalog sales. They founded allstate insurance, with annual revenues of around $40 billion. They owned dean witter brokerage, sears credit and later the discover financial network. As earlier mentioned, sears' real estate holdings were vast and they built what long reigned as the world's tallest building.

Early on sears partnered with ibm and developed prodigy, which by the early 90s became the world's second largest online service. And while sears did not enter tv production directly, it was a huge player in the advertising world, spending up to $2 billion a year or more. That gave them tremendous clout when it came to what it made onto the air and what didn't.

Unlike amazon, sears developed its own major product lines in many fields -- lawn and garden, tools and power equipment, sporting goods, musical instruments, automotive products and much more.

My point is simply that if the air can come of out of a titanic balloon like sears, it's certainly possible with a company like amazon. I'm sure jeff bezos and the amazon board would readily acknowledge that.

*snap*

[citidata18]

Originally Posted by arjay57

Well, times are different and the two companies are obviously not exactly the same.

However, Sears had an incredibly diverse book of business that went far beyond retail and catalog sales. They founded Allstate Insurance, with annual revenues of around $40 billion. They owned Dean Witter brokerage, Sears credit and later the Discover Financial network. As earlier mentioned, Sears' real estate holdings were vast and they built what long reigned as the world's tallest building.

Early on Sears partnered with IBM and developed Prodigy, which by the early 90s became the world's second largest online service. And while Sears did not enter TV production directly, it was a huge player in the advertising world, spending up to $2 billion a year or more. That gave them tremendous clout when it came to what it made onto the air and what didn't.

Unlike Amazon, Sears developed its own major product lines in many fields -- lawn and garden, tools and power equipment, sporting goods, musical instruments, automotive products and much more.

My point is simply that if the air can come of out of a titanic balloon like Sears, it's certainly possible with a company like Amazon. I'm sure Jeff Bezos and the Amazon board would readily acknowledge that.

I agree with your last paragraph that all companies will peak and even decline eventually. I just don't think the comparison with Sears is a very good one. A better comparison to Sears, if you want to make one, would be General Motors (whose operations all depended on selling cars).

In fact, the rate and extent in which Amazon's growing and diversifying its portfolio is almost unprecedented (the only other company I can think of that was similar is General Electric, and even they didn't diversify at the speed Amazon is). So who knows what the future will bring for it.