The only centi-billionaire on the planet just got another couple billion dollars richer. Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon, saw his fortune rise $2.8 billion on Tuesday as the stock of his e-commerce giant climbed 2.5% &#8211; a day after the launch of its first cashier-less store garnered much buzz around the industry.
Bezos now boasts a net worth of $113.5 billion, according to Forbes&#8217; calculations &#8211; his highest ever. It&#8217;s a significant lead over the world’s second and third richest men, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, who have net worths of $92.5 billion and $92.3 billion, respectively. Bezos’ 12-figure-fortune nominally makes him the wealthiest person since Forbes started tracking fortunes in 1982. If we factor in inflation, Bill Gates was richer back in 1999, when he briefly passed $100 billion &#8211; worth roughly $150 billion in today&#8217;s dollars.
<a href="http://www.forbesafrica.com/billionaires/2018/01/10/heres-jeff-bezos-not-truly-richest-person-history/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">READ MORE: Here&#8217;s Why Jeff Bezos Is Not Truly The Richest Man In History</a>
The Microsoft founder has also given away a large chunk of his wealth &#8211; his lifetime giving stands at over $36 billion. His Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, run by Gates and his wife, is the world’s largest private philanthropic foundation.
Bezos has only recently begun to give away bits of his fortune. The son of a Cuban immigrant, Bezos asked his 400,000 Twitter followers in June 2017 for philanthropic ideas, and recently <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/angelauyeung/2018/01/12/jeff-bezos-son-of-cuban-immigrant-gives-33-million-to-nonprofit-helping-dreamers-pay-for-college/#4c47acc148eb" target="_blank" rel="noopener">donated $33 million to fund college scholarships</a> for undocumented high school students.
Bezos derives the majority of his wealth from his 16% stake in Amazon. He is also the owner of The Washington Post and the founder of rocket start-up Blue Origin. Business has been good for The Post; it was reported earlier in January that the storied newspaper more than doubled its digital subscriptions in 2017 and will be profitable for the second year straight.
<a href="http://www.forbesafrica.com/billionaires/2017/07/31/besides-jeff-bezos-6-people-whove-also-worlds-richest/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">READ MORE: Besides Jeff Bezos: 6 People Who&#8217;ve Also Been The World&#8217;s Richest</a>
On Jan. 18, Amazon announced a list of 20 finalists for its second headquarters, which received 238 proposals from all over North America. Just four days later, the much anticipated Amazon Go store opened in its hometown of Seattle. The shop, which was previously accessible to employees only, sells a limited selection of groceries, meal kits, and prepared foods. Customers swipe into the store with the Amazon Go app, pick items off the shelves, then walk out with the goods &#8211; without ever needing to wait for a cashier. Cameras line the store to keep track of each shopper’s purchases, and the bill is charged to their Amazon accounts.
It remains unclear where Amazon intends to go with Amazon Go next, though it has been expanding its brick and mortar exposure, both with its bookstores and with the acquisition of organic grocery retailer Whole Foods.
<a href="http://www.forbesafrica.com/focus/2017/08/25/amazon-lays-whole-foods-strategy-shakes-wall-street-anew/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">READ MORE: Amazon Lays Out Its Whole Foods Strategy And Shakes Up Wall Street Anew</a>
Bezos got his start on Wall Street, where he worked for famed quantitative hedge fund D.E. Shaw after graduating from Princeton with degrees in computer science and electrical engineering. After climbing up the ladder at D.E. Shaw, Bezos quit and drove across the country to Seattle in 1994. He founded Amazon in the garage of his home and started selling books online, personally driving the packages to the post office in his 1987 Chevy Blazer. The online retailer is now one of the world’s most valuable companies, active in cloud computing, online streaming and smart devices, and has a market capitalization of over $650 billion. &#8211; Written by <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jenniferwang/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-ga-track="contrib block byline">Jennifer Wang</a>, FORBES STAFF

Jeff Bezos Gains $2.8 Billion, Reaches Highest Net Worth Ever

<a href="http://www.forbes.com/profile/jeff-bezos/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jeff Bezos</a> isn&#8217;t wasting any time figuring out how Amazon will integrate its biggest-ever acquisition, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurengensler/2017/06/16/amazon-to-buy-whole-foods-for-13-7-billion/#4a6385c11958" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the $13.7 billion takeover</a> of grocer Whole Foods. Ahead of the deal&#8217;s planned close on Monday, Amazon has laid price cuts for wares in Whole Foods stores nationwide and plans to integrate the grocer within its larger e-commerce platform. Once more, Amazon&#8217;s relentless growth shook Wall Street.
Starting Monday, Whole Foods will cut prices on everything from bananas and avocados to eggs, Tilapia, beef and baby kale in its existing stores nationwide. After a technical integration, Amazon Prime will become a part of Whole Foods&#8217; rewards program, offering prime members savings and other in-store benefits. Eventually, popular Whole Foods private label products such as 365 Everyday Value, Whole Catch and pet foods oriented Whole Paws will be integrated with <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="AMZN" data-exchange="NASDAQ" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/196" data-quotes-closing="957.56" data-quotes-now="952.45" data-link="/companies/amazon/" data-name="Amazon.com"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/amazon/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Amazon.com</a>, Amazon Fresh, Prime Pantry and Prime Now. Finally, Amazon Lockers for e-commerce pickups will become available in some Whole Foods stores.
“To get started, we’re going to lower prices beginning Monday on a selection of best-selling grocery staples, including Whole Trade organic bananas, responsibly-farmed salmon, organic large brown eggs, animal-welfare-rated 85% lean ground beef, and more. And this is just the beginning – we will make Amazon Prime the customer rewards program at <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="WFM" data-exchange="NASDAQ" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/4721" data-quotes-closing="41.69" data-quotes-now="41.99" data-link="/companies/whole-foods-market/" data-name="Whole Foods Market"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/whole-foods-market/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Whole Foods Market</a> and continuously lower prices as we invent together. There is significant work and opportunity ahead, and we’re thrilled to get started,” said Jeff Wilke, CEO of Amazon Worldwide Consumer.
“By working together with Amazon and integrating in several key areas, we can lower prices and double down on that mission and reach more people with Whole Foods Market’s high-quality, natural and organic food. As part of our commitment to quality, we’ll continue to expand our efforts to support and promote local products and suppliers,&#8221; added Whole Foods co-founder and CEO John Mackey. &#8220;We can’t wait to start showing customers what’s possible when Whole Foods Market and Amazon innovate together.”
<a href="http://www.forbesafrica.com/billionaires/2017/07/28/amazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-reign-worlds-richest-lasted-just-hours/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos’ Reign As World’s Richest Lasted Just A Few Hours</a>
This, Amazon says, is &#8220;just the beginning&#8221; as it begins building out more in-store benefits and innovations surrounding logistics and point-of-sale systems. On Wednesday the Federal Trade Commission blessed Amazon&#8217;s purchase of Whole Foods, clearing the major hurdle to the deal&#8217;s close and investors are already reacting.
Once Amazon&#8217;s plans were unveiled, stocks of grocers, consumer products conglomerates and brick-and-mortar retailers began to plunge. In late afternoon trading, <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="KR" data-exchange="NYSE" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/2525" data-quotes-closing="22.96" data-quotes-now="21.1" data-link="/companies/kroger/" data-name="Kroger"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/kroger/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kroger</a> fell nearly 8% within multi-year lows, while Sprouts Farmers Market and <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="SVU" data-exchange="NYSE" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/4146" data-quotes-closing="21.83" data-quotes-now="20.39" data-link="/companies/supervalu/" data-name="Supervalu"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/supervalu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Supervalu</a> fell roughly 6%. <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="COST" data-exchange="NASDAQ" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/1120" data-quotes-closing="159.37" data-quotes-now="151.33" data-link="/companies/costco-wholesale/" data-name="Costco Wholesale"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/costco-wholesale/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Costco Wholesale</a> fell over 4%, while <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="TGT" data-exchange="NYSE" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/4220" data-quotes-closing="56.46" data-quotes-now="54.21" data-link="/companies/target/" data-name="Target"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/target/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Target</a> and <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="WMT" data-exchange="NYSE" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/4647" data-quotes-closing="79.96" data-quotes-now="78.34" data-link="/companies/wal-mart-stores/" data-name="Wal-Mart Stores"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/wal-mart-stores/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wal-Mart Stores</a> fell 3% and 2% respectively. Grocery aisle giants like Mondelez, Kraft Heinz, <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="K" data-exchange="NYSE" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/2424" data-quotes-closing="69.91" data-quotes-now="67.91" data-link="/companies/kellogg/" data-name="Kellogg"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/kellogg/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kellogg</a>, <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="CPB" data-exchange="NYSE" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/763" data-quotes-closing="54.19" data-quotes-now="52.48" data-link="/companies/campbell-soup/" data-name="Campbell Soup"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/campbell-soup/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Campbell Soup</a> and <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="GIS" data-exchange="NYSE" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/1756" data-quotes-closing="57.68" data-quotes-now="55.68" data-link="/companies/general-mills/" data-name="General Mills"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/general-mills/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">General Mills</a> all fell more than 2%. In real estate, shopping center REITs like Brixmor, <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="KIM" data-exchange="NYSE" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/2448" data-quotes-closing="19.79" data-quotes-now="19.6" data-link="/companies/kimco-realty/" data-name="Kimco Realty"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/kimco-realty/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kimco Realty</a>, Regency Centers and DDR all fell in late trading.
The selloff indicates investors aren&#8217;t waiting to see if Amazon&#8217;s plans in the grocery aisle will take hold, instead they&#8217;re simply heading for the exits. Last quarter, Amazon saw its revenues rise 25% to $38 billion as it grabs a greater pie of overall consumer spending at the expense of traditional brick and mortar retailers like <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="M" data-exchange="NYSE" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/1562" data-quotes-closing="20.5" data-quotes-now="20.69" data-link="/companies/macys/" data-name="Macy's"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/macys/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Macy&#8217;s</a>, JC Penney and <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="UAA" data-exchange="NYSE" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/9820" data-quotes-closing="16.99" data-quotes-now="17.05" data-link="/companies/under-armour/" data-name="Under Armour"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/under-armour/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Under Armour</a>. Some hedge funds calculate Amazon&#8217;s current sales growth rate implies the company is grabbing nearly a third of all retail sales growth, ex autos.
<a href="http://www.forbesafrica.com/homepage/2017/06/27/cash-falling-fashion-will-disappear-forever/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cash is falling out of fashion &#8211; will it disappear forever?</a>
It&#8217;s not just stock investors who see an impact from Amazon. Some of Wall Street&#8217;s best minds see Amazon&#8217;s relentless rise as evidence of dramatic shifts in the overall economy. Rick Rieder, who oversees $1.7 trillion in assets as CIO of global fixed income for <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="BLK" data-exchange="NYSE" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/637" data-quotes-closing="418.07" data-quotes-now="415.94" data-link="/companies/blackrock/" data-name="BlackRock"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/blackrock/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BlackRock</a>, believes disruptive e-commerce giants like Amazon are depressing overall inflation in the United States.
&#8220;We’re in the midst of one of the greatest supply-side-driven cost revolutions of all time,&#8221; Rieder said on Aug. 11, in response to weaker-than-expected inflation figures and pointed specifically to what he deems is the &#8220;Amazon effect.&#8221; How so? Inflation readings are disappointing despite a labor market that has hardly been healthier in a generation.
&#8220;We are watching cash flows shift at an extraordinary pace, are seeing powerful disinflationary forces at work, and all while both inflation and labor market volatility reside at extremely low levels,&#8221; said Rieder. &#8220;A large part of what we’re witnessing here could be described as the “Amazon effect,” which is having a powerful deflationary impact on large swathes of the goods economy.&#8221;
Rieder&#8217;s theory extends beyond just the &#8220;Amazon effect.&#8221; Across Silicon Valley, disruptive platforms are dramatically changing consumer behavior. Ride sharing companies like <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="null" data-exchange="null" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/105483" data-quotes-closing="0.0" data-quotes-now="0.0" data-link="/companies/uber/" data-name="Uber"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/uber/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Uber</a>, Lyft and Via are impacting demand curves in the auto and car rental business; auto rental stocks like <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="null" data-exchange="null" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/103986" data-quotes-closing="0.0" data-quotes-now="0.0" data-link="/companies/hertz/" data-name="Hertz"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/hertz/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hertz</a> and <span class="quotecard ng-isolate-scope" data-ticker="null" data-exchange="null" data-type="organization" data-naturalid="fred/company/12929" data-quotes-closing="0.0" data-quotes-now="0.0" data-link="/companies/avis/" data-name="Avis"><a class="ng-binding" href="http://www.forbes.com/companies/avis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Avis</a> Budget have been among the market&#8217;s poorest performers over the past 18-months, alongside retail.
Perhaps, the &#8220;Amazon effect&#8221; will come up as the Federal Reserve undergoes its annual meeting in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where they will meet with key central bankers and debate the health of the global economy and prospective policies. BlackRock&#8217;s Rieder believes the Fed should reign in its inflation expectations to 1.5% to 2%, from a prior 2% target. Such a scenario would impact U.S. and global monetary policy.
Bottom Line: For now, Amazon is again rattling Wall Street, this time by entering the grocery business. Amazon Prime is poised to now be a powerhouse in everything from e-commerce, to streaming media and grocery shopping. &#8211; Written by Antoine Gara, FORBES STAFF

Tag: Whole Foods

FORBES AFRICA SOCIAL MEDIA

Jeff Bezos Gains $2.8 Billion, Reaches Highest Net Worth Ever

Amazon Lays Out Its Whole Foods Strategy And Shakes Up Wall Street Anew