Our investments and contribution to economic growth and employment in France
France is important to Amazon and over the years, we have established a strong relationship with tens of millions of French citizens who rely on us every day. As a matter of fact, 94% of Amazon’s customers find the company useful in their daily lives, according to an IFOP survey ran in March 2022. This is even more significant in small municipalities (where 64% of the clients say they could not live without Amazon), as well as in rural areas (67%), territories where 85% of respondents who use Amazon believe that the company is able to offer them products that they cannot find in the shops near them.
It is to better serve them that we have made direct investments in our French businesses of more than €16 billion between 2010 and 2021. This includes both infrastructure building and operating expenditures, including the salaries we pay. We think both are important, because both generate growth and have a positive impact on the economy. Over the past five years, Amazon has more than tripled its direct workforce and announced earlier this year the creation of 3,000 permanent jobs across France in 2022, taking our total permanent workforce to more than 18,500 by the end of the year at our corporate office in Clichy, AWS data centres, and our logistics sites (fulfillment and delivery stations) across the country.
Our contribution to the financing of public services and the French welfare system in 2021
As we continue to make investments in our FR operations and our growing workforce, we are increasingly contributing to the financing of public services and the French welfare system. The taxes and levies that are collected by State authorities from Amazon as a consequence of our activities in France fall into two categories:
- Directly incurred taxes: the taxes that are directly incurred and payable by Amazon. They include in particular corporate income tax, digital services tax, payroll taxes paid by employers, and other local taxes.
- Indirect taxes collected and remitted: the taxes we collect from our customers, employees and other third parties because of our business activities in France and remit to the French authorities. They include VAT and payroll taxes borne by our employees but withheld and remitted by Amazon.
It’s important to understand both of those categories, because focusing narrowly on one aspect of taxation, such as Corporation Tax – which according to some research conducted by the OECD, accounts for about 5% of total tax revenues from taxpayers in France – doesn’t tell the whole story.
Having clarified these points, we are sharing the revenue and tax amounts corresponding to all of Amazon's activities in France. In 2021 :
- The total revenues of Amazon’s activities in France were over €9 bn (2020: approx. €7.3bn)
- Our total tax contribution, taxes and levies collected by the French State (combining direct and indirect) was more than €1 bn (2020: more than €600m). Over €470m (2020: over €310m) of this piece is what we incurred directly as a business on items like corporate tax, employer payroll taxes, and other local taxes.
Amazon's contribution to the financing of public services and the French social security system amounts to hundreds of millions of euros each year, placing Amazon in the top 100 of France’s most fiscally contributive companies, considering the 2021 and 2020 analysis of the French Tax System for Business Firms from Deloitte and our fiscal contributions over the same periods (available here).
“We are proud of our contribution to the French economy. Our ambition is simple: to invest, to create jobs, to develop talents, to contribute to French society throughout our territory and to progress every day to better serve the French.”
“The installation of Amazon in Moult was done with respect for the territory. Throughout this project, which is now operational, the company has shown honesty and transparency. Amazon implementation has been economically beneficial, with the creation of numerous jobs and a fiscal contribution allowing the town to invest in the creation of new facilities, particularly for young people. Amazon's logistics site has also made it possible to transform an industrial wasteland into a dynamic business park, ultimately helping to make the territory more attractive.”
"The arrival of Amazon in Rivesaltes was an opportunity that all the elected representatives of the Perpignan metropolis were able to seize. In addition to the many jobs created by the company's activity, this implementation is part of a welcome economic revitalisation of the region. The experience of a major economic player like Amazon, put at the service of the local area, is an undeniable asset.”
"There is no doubt that the installation of Amazon in our metropolis has been an economic asset. The development of the company's logistics site has made it possible to rehabilitate an industrial wasteland and create more than 200 jobs. But none of this would have been possible without the effective collaboration between the metropolitan attractiveness agency, Dijon Bourgogne Invest, the various departments of the metropolis and Amazon. The active contribution of local players such as Pôle Emploi and Creativ, the employment and skills cluster in the Dijon area, also contributed to the company's long-term establishment in the region.”
“Listening and pragmatism are the words that describe our relationship with Amazon. In the context of the creation of a delivery agency in the Greater Belfort area, Amazon's teams maintained a constant and transparent dialogue with the local authorities. By consulting our services during the design of the project, Amazon was able to ensure a rapid and smooth implementation. The establishment of the site has also led to the creation of around 300 direct and indirect jobs, creating a dynamic in the Territoire-de-Belfort. The delivery agency creates synergies with local economic players and contributes to the development of the department's largest business park. The arrival of Amazon in our agglomeration is therefore a source of satisfaction.”
Supporting the growth of France-based small and medium businesses all year round
Since 2003 and the opening of Amazon to selling partners, a trustful relationship has developed between Amazon and thousands small and medium-sized French businesses. Globally, they continue to account for over 50% of everything we sell in our online stores, and we are always innovating to help them grow their business — our success depends on their success. In 2021, we spent approximately €3,4 billion in Europe on logistics, tools, services, programs, training, and our team to help small and medium businesses selling on Amazon succeed. Those companies help us deliver a great shopping experience to customers with a wide product selection and low prices, and we help them by providing access to hundreds of millions of customer accounts around the globe.
"I launched my company on Amazon in 2019. Amazon’s very simple selling tools, both in terms of ease of use and clarity of solutions, has enabled me to sell my creations well beyond my native Brittany and my sales increase by an average of 20% every year!", stated Delphine Stéphan, creator of the accessories brand Bistrakoo, based in Finistère.
The 2021, Amazon’s SMB Impact Report for France highlights the success of more than 13,000 SMBs selling on our stores. In 2021, France selling partners had an average of more than €150,000 in sales. More than 2,500 French SMBs selling on Amazon have exceeded €100,000 in sales and more than 100 of them exceeded €1 million in sales for the first time in 2021. They have created 35,000 jobs to support their business online.
"At the beginning, we were mainly interested in Amazon's logistics services, which were easy to use and allowed us to export our products easily throughout Europe. Today, we make almost half of our turnover on Amazon and sales increase considerably each year: more than 170% in 2022", explained Alexandre Garnier, Co-manager of Novoma, a Toulouse-based company specialising in food supplements.
Read the full report here.
“Our Marketplace is a formidable growth engine for French small and medium businesses that don't always have the resources, time or skills to take the digital plunge and embark on the e-commerce adventure. It allows them to benefit from Amazon's know-how in terms of logistics, sales and marketing so they can focus on their core business. The Fulfillment by Amazon service helps French business owners to rapidly develop their sales across France but also internationally by accessing Amazon's international logistics resources, as well as the millions of customers across the world”, details Patrick Labarre, Marketplace Director, Amazon.fr. “In France, over 6,000 SMBs took advantage of the Fulfillment by Amazon service in 2021, and their sales grew by 60%.”
Besides, by selling their products through Amazon, French SMBs have accessed to hundreds of millions of active customers around the world and have achieved €600 million in export sales. Among the top 3 regions in metropolitan France with the highest export sales are: Ile-de-France (over 250 million euros), Hauts-de-France (over 70 million euros) and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (over 60 million euros).
"Our presence on Amazon has complemented our traditional business and we are now capitalizing on Amazon's Fulfilment by Amazon service to increase our sales and develop our offerings throughout Europe and North America", said Didier Cazeilles, founding director of the customizable sport accessories brand, All Sport Vintage.
To further support French Small and medium businesses growth, Amazon launched Amazon Business in France in 2018. Historically, small and medium-sized businesses have found it difficult to sell to large enterprises, in part because they often lack the resources to reach them. With Amazon Business, selling partners of all sizes have the opportunity to effectively reach new business buyers in large corporations, universities, government organizations, and healthcare facilities. Amazon Business helps tens of thousands French SMBs to grow and reach more than five million businesses worldwide. French SMBs selling on Amazon Business grew by over 15% in 2021. French SMBs sold over two million items across a variety of categories including IT, healthcare products, office supplies, products for maintenance repair and operations. French SMBs selling with Amazon Business generated over €100 million in sales.
In addition, we help tens of thousands of French SMBs and large companies to develop with the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Cloud. In France, tens of thousands of French companies and startups are using AWS technology to innovate, accelerate their business and develop new ones. More than 80% of CAC 40 companies such as ENGIE and Pernod Ricard, as well as more than 70% of French unicorns such as Back Market, Qonto and Content Square, operate on AWS. In addition, many French public sector organisations use AWS to support their digital transformation. AWS contributes to France's GDP by enabling tens of thousands of customers to increase their revenues and reduce their costs. According to a study commissioned by Public First in 2021, AWS services enabled French companies to contribute €1.6 billion to GDP in 2020, supporting 22,000 full-time jobs.
More than 20 years after our implementation in France, we are convinced that France is an opportunity for Amazon, that the reciprocity is also true, and that the story that unites us is still in its infancy.
