First thing's first — Amazon's doing just fine: While e-commerce has long been the central pillar of Amazon's business, the tech giant actually generated 62% of its Q3 operating income elsewhere last year: the cloud. Amazon Web Services — which helps clients with tech infrastructure services like computational power, storage, and database management — brought in more than $23 billion last quarter. 

Clients of Amazon Web Services include the likes of Disney, Verizon, and Capital One. While this segment of Amazon's business is relatively small, it posted an impressive 30% operating margin in Q3, generating $7 billion in operating income. That outsized profitability highlights Amazon Web Services' massive potential — stay tuned for updates! 

Who's carrying the team? According to a new report released by ShipBob, a fulfillment software provider, nine U.S. states were responsible for more than half of all e-commerce orders last year. Unsurprisingly, the four most populace states — California, Texas, Florida, and New York — drove most of the sales. Together, they accounted for 35% of the total e-commerce activity for the whole country, and if you include Illinois, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, and Washington, that number jumps up to 52%. 

Other key takeaways from ShipBob’s report include the fact that 83% of e-commerce brands grew their year-over-year revenue in 2023 (with 19% of the same group doubling their revenue). Additionally, the report notes that 43% of e-commerce retailers are selling on at least three channels, demonstrating the popularity of omnichannel strategies.