Amazon Box From 1997 Found in Basement Sparks Nostalgia: 'Prime Discovery'

A Reddit user has delighted the internet by sharing a picture of an Amazon delivery box from 1997.

Found in a basement by Patrick S in Minnesota, a picture of the box was shared on the popular Reddit subreddit r/mildlyinteresting with the caption: "I found an Amazon box from 1997 in my basement."

Drawing over 15,000 upvotes and hundreds of comments, the find excited the internet and set off a feeling of nostalgia.

Patrick told Newsweek: "The box didn't actually directly come from Amazon. My dad ordered some materials from a small company and they sent it to him in a box that the company must have just had lying around and decided to reuse.

"When it saw the light of day again, I was extremely surprised by the discovery and posted it on Reddit, thinking a few people would find it, well, mildly interesting."

"This is a prime discovery," wrote one user, while another recalled an early experience with the world's largest online retailer: "I remember buying some books on Amazon and seeing that they had book lights available. I thought, "wow, it's nice that they have a few extra products like that!""

A time before Amazon was a household name feels a million miles away, but user michisjourdi shared her memory: "I remember my sixth grade teacher in 2002 talking about ordering books from her daughter from Amazon, and my little kid brain who had never heard of Amazon, was picturing the actual rainforest sending my teacher the books."

Another long-time user of the site wrote: "Amazon still has my entire purchase history available for review going back to when it was only for books."

In May 1997, Amazon went public for the first time at $18 per share—giving it a valuation of $300 million. Adjusted for three subsequent stock splits, the closing price of Amazon's shares on its first day of trading was just $1.96.

This means that Amazon shares have seen an increase of 17566.72 percent since 1997. Investing $100 on their first day of public trading would mean you'd have a huge $17,566.72 today.

Reddit user Bitbatgaming asked the poster: "Did you invest in the company," to which he responded: "I wasn't born for five years!"

Other users pondered how much has changed in the last 25 years, with one user writing: "There was no way anybody could have predicted what Amazon would become... Not only the digital marketplace, but all the AWS cloud services, streaming, AI assistants and stuff like that. Plus all the weird rocket-man side projects."

One Reddit user recalled: "This box reminds me that I had to do a project about in college (2004ish?) about Amazon's quest to be Earth's Biggest "Everything" Store."

Indeed, since opening the online bookstore in 1994 with $10,000 funding from his own pocket, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has grown to be one of the world's richest people. Announcing he'd be stepping down as Amazon CEO in 2021, Bezos has since reached new heights by being one of the first civilians to fund their own trip into space.

The graph below, provided by Statista, shows the incredible long-term growth of Amazon's revenue and net income since 1997.

You will find more infographics at Statista

It's unclear whether the poster is keeping the box is pride of place, but some users suggested it may be a good money maker in itself: "Sell it on eBay" wrote one user. But another said: "Pretty crazy to think that a box could be worth something."

"The box is back down in the basement and probably won't be needed again for several years," said Patrick: "Some people say it's worth something, but that'll only grow with time, and right now it's doing a fine job holding old bits of fabric and some zippers."

Update 02/18/22 at 3:20 a.m. ET: This article was updated to include an image and comments from the poster.