Small business can compete with Amazon

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From BizWomen:

Small businesses and startups can survive the so-called Amazon effect by being creative and innovative, said U.S. Small Business Administrator Linda McMahon.

McMahon was in Denver Sept. 28 for the sixth annual Denver Startup Week, a week of free panel discussions, workshops and networking events for entrepreneurs in all stages.

Metro Denver has recently attracted the eye of Amazon.com The e-commerce giant opened a 1 million-square-foot fulfillment center in suburb Aurora this month and has broken ground on a 2.4 million-square-foot fulfillment center in nearby Thornton, expected to open in August 2018.

Now, the Seattle-based company is on the hunt for a city in which to build its second headquarters, expected to be a $5 billion project and employ as many as 50,000 people. Colorado and metro Denver leaders plan to bid on the facility.

But it’s in no way doomsday for small businesses, McMahon said. “There is no way for a small business to compete against an Amazon that has not only product development but its online services and distribution,” she said.

“But what small businesses have to do is focus on what they are doing -- what is their niche, where do they fit in, how can they be their own entity in a world that is changing?”

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