Amazon has taken a lot of stick lately. It's already blamed for the disappearance of bookshops on the high street. More recently its tax avoidance and its treatment of workers have been hitting the headlines. So, as the Pythons once asked about the Romans, what has Amazon ever done for us?

Well, apart from its role in pioneering the whole business of buying online, it introduced product ratings by consumers and safe one click buying, both tools which we now take for granted on all decent websites. From the point of view of my business, it has provided a marketplace in which small independents can compete with the major retailers. Your Life Your Style sells on Amazon's website and our products are placed in front of vastly greater numbers than I could ever afford to reach through my own marketing.

It's true that if you regard online retailing as a major cause of the decline of the high street, then Amazon is a villain but the fact is, the switch to internet buying would have happened anyway. Amazon just had the nous to get trading online first. Better I think to credit them with helping small businesses fight the juggernauts of the national chains who have driven all individuality from the high street and from many local communities' shops. I'm not saying this is altruism on Amazon's part- I pay quite a bit for the privilege of selling on their website- but, even if it is in the pursuit of profit, it has done more than the government to help my small retailing business.

Yes, Amazon avoids paying tax on the profits it makes from goods advertised and sold in the UK because they are based in Luxembourg. And, yes, it appears to avoid its own union agreements on working conditions by employing agency workers. But, in business, there is always a debate about whether one should do the moral thing which may cost more or merely the legal which may damage one's image.

And what Amazon do is not illegal. They are doing what many of us do, which is to take advantage of laws and allowances to pay less tax. All of us want to reduce our costs. Amazon is a global company that wants to use its money to expand globally. If we would like it to behave more like a UK company, it's up to the UK government to change the corporation tax and worker protection laws. If you as a consumer don't like its business practices, it's up to you to shop elsewhere.

As competition increases, it remains to be seen whether its battered image will put Amazon at a disadvantage. Play and Tesco are the first of what will be many who have followed Amazon's example and allowed other retailers to sell on their website. John Lewis and other national retailers are using their chains of shops to their advantage by combining online and physical shopping into one multi-choice experience and offering the convenience of click-and-collect.

Whatever the future holds, let's give credit to Amazon for what it has achieved so far for the online shopper and for independent retailers.

This blog was written by Paul Lewis, owner of the marketing consultancy The Lewis Experience and online retailer Your Life Your Style, and former Head of Marketing at The Mayflower Theatre. You can connect with him on Google+ and LinkedIn.