Amazon vs Etsy: Founders, CEOs and History
Amazon was founded in 1994 by Jeffrey Preston Bezos and is led by Andy Jassy. Etsy was founded in 2005 by Robert Kalin, Chris Maguire, Haim Schoppik and is led by Kruti Patel Goyal.
Company facts
Founders
Amazon
Jeffrey Preston Bezos
Amazon was founded in 1994 by Jeff Bezos, an electrical engineering and computer science graduate from Princeton who was working as a paid quantitative analyst at the Wall Street firm D. E. Shaw & Co.
Etsy
Robert Kalin
Etsy possesses a well-known, specific founding story, rooted not in global ambition, but in the niche, frustrated 'maker' community of Brooklyn, New York.
Chris Maguire
Chris Maguire earned a BA in Art, Computer Science & Animation from NYU. He was the primary developer who built Etsy's backend systems, database architecture, and original marketplace functionality.
Haim Schoppik
Haim Schoppik was a web developer who met Robert Kalin through GetCrafty.com. He left NYU before graduating to build Etsy full-time.
Jared Tarbell
Jared Tarbell is an incredibly talented American generative artist, programmer, and one of the original four co-founders of the massive e-commerce platform Etsy.
CEOs and their tenures
Amazon
- Jeffrey P. Bezos1994–2021
Founder & CEO
Jeff Bezos founded Amazon in 1994 and was chief executive until July 2021. He moved the company beyond books in 1998, opened the store to third-party sellers in November 2000, launched Prime in 2005, funded AWS from 2006, and bought Whole Foods Market in 2017.…
Source - Andrew R. Jassy2021–present
CEO
Andy Jassy became Amazon's chief executive in July 2021. He started the AWS business in 2003 and led it as it grew into the largest cloud infrastructure provider by revenue, reporting $128.7 billion of net sales and $45.6 billion of operating income in FY2025.
Source
Etsy
- Robert Kalin2005–2011
Founder and Former CEO
Kalin's steady dedication to the concept of 'handmade' created a profound, almost cult-like loyalty among early adopters, establishing a powerful brand identity that remains Etsy's most valuable asset.
Source - Chad Dickerson2011–2017
Former Chief Executive Officer
Dickerson's tenure established the vital corporate infrastructure and technical stability needed to support Etsy's rapid global expansion.
Source - Josh Silverman2017–2025
Former CEO and Executive Chair
Silverman is universally credited with executing one of the most successful corporate turnarounds in recent e-commerce history.
Source - Kruti Patel Goyal2026–present
Chief Executive Officer
Goyal's elevation to CEO represents a profound commitment to organic, sustainable growth driven by deep internal platform knowledge rather than drastic external pivots.
Source
Timeline: Amazon and Etsy side by side
1994Amazon
Amazon Founded
Jeff Bezos incorporated the company as Cadabra, Inc. in Washington state on July 5, 1994, after leaving D. E. Shaw. He and MacKenzie Scott drove from New York to Seattle, and Bezos began building the website in the garage of a rented house in Bellevue.
1995Amazon
Amazon.com Launches
Amazon.com went live on July 16, 1995, selling books. In the first month the site shipped orders to all fifty US states and forty-five other countries.
1997Amazon
IPO on NASDAQ
Amazon went public on May 14, 1997, selling 3,000,000 shares at $18 each on NASDAQ under the ticker AMZN, raising $54 million. Net sales that year grew 838% to $147.8 million.
2000Amazon
Third-Party Marketplace Launch
Amazon Marketplace launched in November 2000, letting third parties sell on the same product pages as Amazon. Third-party sellers accounted for 61% of paid units by the fourth quarter of 2025.
2005Amazon
Amazon Prime Introduced
Amazon announced Prime on February 2, 2005, a $79-per-year membership with unlimited two-day delivery on about one million items. The US price is now $139 a year.
2005Etsy
Etsy Launches from Brooklyn Apartment
Robert Kalin, Chris Maguire, and Haim Schoppik built and launched Etsy in June 2005 from a Brooklyn apartment. The first item sold on the fourth day. By mid-2006, the platform had 10,000 sellers and 40,000 buyers with zero advertising spend.
2006Amazon
AWS Launches Cloud Services
Amazon Web Services announced Amazon S3 on March 14, 2006, followed by EC2 later that year. AWS reported $128.7 billion of net sales and $45.6 billion of operating income in FY2025.
2007Amazon
Kindle E-Reader Launch
Amazon released the first Kindle in November 2007 at $399, with free cellular downloads over Whispernet and the Kindle self-publishing service launched the same day.
2007Etsy
Series A Funding from Union Square Ventures
Etsy raised approximately $615,000 in a funding round led by Union Square Ventures, with Fred Wilson joining the board. The valuation reached approximately $10.7 million by November 2006.
2008Etsy
Accel Partners Investment and Founder Departures
In January 2008, Etsy raised $27 million from Accel Partners and Jim Breyer at a valuation just under $100 million. In August 2008, both technical co-founders Chris Maguire and Haim Schoppik departed, and then-CEO Robert Kalin stepped down for the first time.
2009Etsy
Kalin Returns as CEO; Chad Dickerson Joins as CTO
Robert Kalin returned as CEO in December 2009 after Maria Thomas's brief tenure. Chad Dickerson, recruited from Yahoo, joined as CTO in September 2008 to professionalize the company's technical infrastructure.
2012Amazon
Kiva Systems Acquisition
Amazon agreed in March 2012 to buy Kiva Systems for approximately $775 million in cash, bringing warehouse robotics in house. Kiva became Amazon Robotics.
2012Etsy
B Corp Certification
Etsy became a certified B Corporation in 2012, recognizing its commitment to social and environmental responsibility alongside profits.
2014Amazon
Twitch Acquisition
Amazon agreed in August 2014 to acquire Twitch Interactive for approximately $970 million in cash, adding live game streaming and a creator community to its media assets.
2015Amazon
Echo and Alexa Reach Everyone
Amazon introduced the Echo speaker and the Alexa assistant in November 2014 for Prime members by invitation, then made Echo generally available in the US in June 2015.
2015Etsy
IPO on NASDAQ at $16 Per Share
Etsy went public on April 16, 2015, pricing shares at $16 each and raising $267 million. The stock surged 88% on the first day of trading to $30.01, giving the company a market capitalization of $3.4 billion.
2016Etsy
Acquisition of Blackbird Technologies for $32.5 Million
Etsy acquired Blackbird Technologies, an AI startup, for $32.5 million to enhance its search and recommendation capabilities. This technology now powers Etsy's machine learning engine for personalized product discovery across 100 million+ listings.
2017Amazon
Whole Foods Acquisition
Amazon agreed in June 2017 to buy Whole Foods Market for $13.7 billion including debt, adding roughly 460 stores and a physical grocery base for delivery and pickup.
2017Etsy
Josh Silverman Becomes CEO; Revenue Turnaround Begins
In May 2017, board member Josh Silverman replaced Chad Dickerson as CEO after a first-quarter loss and a 8% workforce reduction.
2019Etsy
Acquisition of Reverb for $275 Million
In July 2019, Etsy acquired Reverb, a marketplace for new, used, and vintage musical instruments, for $275 million in cash. Reverb was founded in 2013 by David Kalt and had surpassed $1 billion in total sales by 2017.
2020Etsy
COVID-19 Pandemic Drives Explosive Growth
Etsy experienced growth during the COVID-19 pandemic as consumers turned to handmade goods, personalized items, and face masks. Gross merchandise sales more than doubled year-over-year to $10.3 billion. Face mask sales alone reached $346 million in Q2 2020.
2021Amazon
Andy Jassy Becomes CEO
Amazon announced on February 2, 2021 that Jeff Bezos would move to executive chair and Andy Jassy would become CEO. The handover took place on July 5, 2021.
2021Etsy
Acquisitions of Depop and Elo7 for $1.84 Billion Combined
In June 2021, Etsy acquired Depop, an U.K.-based fashion resale app targeting Gen Z, for $1.625 billion. In July 2021, it acquired Elo7, the 'Etsy of Brazil,' for $217 million. Both acquisitions were made at peak tech valuations and later proved problematic.
2022Amazon
MGM Acquisition Completed
Amazon completed its acquisition of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in March 2022 at a purchase price of $8.45 billion, adding a library of more than 4,000 films and 17,000 television episodes to Prime Video.
2022Etsy
$1 Billion Asset Impairment Charge
Etsy recorded $1.0 billion in asset impairment charges, including $897.9 million for Depop and $147.1 million for Elo7, reflecting the decline in valuations and performance of its 2021 acquisitions.
2023Amazon
One Medical Deal Closes and the FTC Sues
Amazon completed its $3.9 billion acquisition of One Medical in February 2023. In September 2023 the FTC and 17 state attorneys general sued Amazon over marketplace practices, and that case is still unresolved.
2023Etsy
Sale of Elo7 and 11% Workforce Reduction
In July 2023, Etsy sold Elo7 to Brazilian marketplace Enjoei for an undisclosed amount, likely at a loss.
2024Etsy
Revenue Growth Slows to 2.2%; Seller Setup Fee Introduced
Etsy reported revenue of $2.81 billion in 2024, up just 2.2% from 2023, the slowest growth rate since the IPO.
2025Amazon
One Millionth Robot and Project Rainier
Amazon deployed its one millionth robot in mid-2025 across more than 300 facilities and released the DeepFleet AI model to route them. In October 2025 AWS brought Project Rainier, a cluster of roughly 500,000 Trainium2 chips built with Anthropic, fully online.
2025Amazon
FTC Prime Settlement and the Amazon Leo Rebrand
Amazon agreed in September 2025 to pay $2.5 billion to settle the FTC's Prime enrollment case, $1 billion in civil penalties plus $1.5 billion in customer refunds.
2025Etsy
Sale of Reverb; Depop Sale Agreement; CEO Transition
On June 2, 2025, Etsy completed the sale of Reverb to Creator Partners and Servco Pacific. On February 18, 2026, the company announced an agreement to sell Depop to eBay for $1.2 billion in cash.
2026Amazon
Record FY2025 Results and 30,000 Corporate Cuts
Amazon reported FY2025 net sales of $716.9 billion, operating income of $80.0 billion, and net income of $77.7 billion. In January 2026 it cut about 16,000 corporate roles, following 14,000 in October 2025.
Acquisitions
Amazon
- One Medical2023$3.9B
- Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer2022$8.4B
- Ring2018Undisclosed
- PillPack2018$753M
- Whole Foods Market2017$13.7B
- Twitch Interactive2014$970M
Etsy
- Depop Limited2021$1.6B
- Elo7 Serviços de Informática S.A.2021$217M
- Reverb Holdings, Inc.2019$275M
- Blackbird Technologies2016$32.5M
Questions about Amazon vs Etsy
Who is the CEO of Amazon.com, Inc. and Etsy, Inc.?
Amazon.com, Inc. is led by Andy Jassy and Etsy, Inc. is led by Kruti Patel Goyal. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was Amazon.com, Inc. founded vs Etsy, Inc.?
Amazon.com, Inc. was founded in 1994 — 11 years before Etsy, Inc., which was founded in 2005. Amazon.com, Inc.'s longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Etsy, Inc..
How many employees does Amazon.com, Inc. have compared to Etsy, Inc.?
Amazon.com, Inc. employs approximately 1,576,000 people, while Etsy, Inc. employs approximately 2,400. Amazon.com, Inc. has the larger workforce at 1,576,000 employees, compared to Etsy, Inc.'s 2,400. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are Amazon.com, Inc. and Etsy, Inc. headquartered?
Both Amazon.com, Inc. and Etsy, Inc. are headquartered in United States, meaning they operate under the same primary regulatory and tax environment.
Who founded Amazon.com, Inc. and Etsy, Inc.?
Amazon.com, Inc. was founded by Jeffrey Preston Bezos. Etsy, Inc. was founded by Robert Kalin, Chris Maguire, Haim Schoppik, Jared Tarbell.
Which company has a longer operating history — Amazon.com, Inc. or Etsy, Inc.?
Amazon.com, Inc. has been operating for approximately 32 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Etsy, Inc. has been in operation for around 21 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Amazon vs Etsy overview