In his first letter to shareholders in Amazon’s 1997 annual report, Bezos explained his
company’s strategy and the metrics he cared about most:
We first measure ourselves in terms of the metrics most indicative of our market
leadership: customer and revenue growth, the degree to which our customers
continue to purchase from us on a repeat basis, and the strength of our brand. We
have invested and will continue to invest aggressively to expand and leverage our
customer base, brand, and infrastructure as we move to establish an enduring
franchise.