So this wasn't the Amazon that people knew and loved in those beginning days. Orders went from being two day shipping to going over a month for some items or being completely sold out. There's not enough people in the warehouses to fulfill them because they're not at their peak hiring and also their people are getting sick. All of a sudden, the orders are coming in fast and furious and a few things are happening. COVID comes, there's no on ramping people. This is something that they have a very well oiled machine to handle. So normally during that type of demand, which is the holiday season, they have a month of onboarding new people to handle the influx of orders and there's training. Speaker 2: We're talking about day after day, month after month of orders coming in like it's Black Friday. In early 2020, that surge in demand for toilet paper and everything else meant Amazon was crushed by an overwhelming number of orders. The problems that Andy Jassy is facing now have their roots at the start of the pandemic. Coming up on the show, Andy Jassy's big problem at Amazon. Speaker 1: Welcome to The Journal, our show about money, business, and power. Speaker 2: Now he's got this massive cleanup job to do in his first year. They're having a little bit of a tough time. It's the slowest growth we've seen in two decades. Speaker 2: Amazon is going through one of its worst financial stretches in its history now. Speaker 6: Right now you're seeing Amazon shares being obliterated down more than 10% here in the pre-market, Amazon stocks. Speaker 5: Amazon has reported its first quarterly loss since 2015, the company reported a loss of over $3.8 billion. Speaker 1: But in the year, since Jassy took over, Amazon has been having a hard time. Of course, that was already an elevated forecast. Speaker 3: Some Amazon numbers here, guys, revenue $89 billion, forecast was for $81.4 billion. Speaker 2: They smashed earnings and they were one of the biggest beneficiaries of the virus. Speaker 1: And all that spending meant the company was making lots of money. Speaker 2: I think you're indicative of a lot of the country, to be honest. But the number one place I was spending all my money. Speaker 1: I was just looking back at my credit card statements from 2020 and Amazon was at the top of the list, every month. And then people were buying puzzles and they just really couldn't even keep up with demand. It was like the great toilet paper rush and then it was the sanitizer rush. You'll probably remember everyone relied on them. So when he took over, Amazon was riding this pandemic high. Speaker 2: Andy Jassy took over from Jeff Bezos last July 5th and I don't think it's been the year he quite expected. Our colleague Dana Mattioli covers the company. So when he stepped down last year, his successor, Andy Jassy, had big shoes to fill. He founded Amazon and grew it into one of the largest and most successful companies in the world. Speaker 1: Jeff Bezos is one of the most well known corporate executives in America. This version may not be in its final form and may be updated. This transcript was prepared by a transcription service.
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