Cash Flow is King: Why Your Amazon Business Might Die Even If Sales Look Great
Amazon sellers love bragging about revenue. Screenshots of “$100k month” get plastered all over LinkedIn like they’re badges of honour. But here’s the harsh truth: revenue doesn’t pay the bills — cash flow does.
I’ve seen businesses “crushing it” with six figures a month on Amazon, yet behind the scenes they’re broke. Why? Because they’ve starved their cash flow. They’ve outspent their inventory, over-invested in PPC, or simply ignored their margins until the numbers bit them in the arse.
Revenue ≠ Profit, and Profit ≠ Cash Flow
Revenue: The flex — looks good on the outside.
Profit: Better, but still just a number on a spreadsheet.
Cash Flow: The lifeblood. If you run out, game over — no stock, no ads, no business.
You can be profitable on paper and still crash if you can’t pay suppliers or restock inventory. It’s like being a bodybuilder who eats perfectly on training days, then starves the rest of the week — you’ll never grow.
The Silent Killer of Amazon Businesses
Here’s where most sellers screw up:
Dumping profits straight into PPC without checking if the margin can sustain it.
Poor inventory forecasting, leading to massive stockouts (aka missed sales + lost rank).
Ignoring payment cycles and VAT obligations until suddenly the taxman is breathing down their neck.
Why Cash Flow is the Real King
Cash flow gives you options:
To restock faster than competitors.
To invest in product launches without maxing out credit.
To absorb the random curveballs Amazon throws at you (suspensions, lost shipments, etc.).
When we run audits, one of the first things we do is pick apart the P&L and forecast forward-facing cash flow. Because until you know how long your cash will actually last, you’re flying blind.
The Takeaway
Stop worshipping revenue screenshots and start managing cash flow like your life depends on it — because in Amazon, it does. If revenue is vanity and profit is sanity, then cash flow is survival.
