Amazon.com forays into Indian e-commerce arena
5 Jun 2013 11:45 PM GMT
Global retail giant Amazon.com on Wednesday announced its full scale foray into the Indian e-commerce space with its online marketplace Amazon.in.
The company will begin operations with just two product categories — books and movies — and later on add mowre selections such as camera and mobile phones.
'E-commerce is at a very nascent stage in India and we see it as a exciting opportunity for us. There's lot of opportunity for innovation and to provide value to our customers,' Amazon India Vice President and Country Manager, Amit Agarwal said.
He said that the company, which had entered the Indian online shopping with its price aggregator and selection website Junglee.com in February 2012, will continue to focus on both the ventures.
'We wanted to be in India. We are entering now because we are ready. We have long-term view on this...We have long-term vision for both Amazon.in and Junglee.com. We will invest in both,' said Agarwal.
Amazon's announcement comes nearly three months after its Vice-President Paul E Misener met Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma seeking relaxation in FDI policy in retail. Currently, India allows 100 per cent FDI only in business to business (B2B) e-commerce and not in retail trading online.
Agarwal said Amazon complied with the existing India FDI policy on retail.
'Marketplace is an established and allowed operating model and several marketplaces are already operating in India,' he said.
Amazon.in will not sell products directly to customers but only provide a platform to sellers, he said, adding the company was offering an online marketplace for buyers and sellers.
Despite being a late entrant in the e-commerce space, Agarwal feels that there is enough room for many players in many formats.
When asked about investments, Amazon officials declined to disclose the capital that the company has put in India.
Amazon will charge a referral fee, monthly subscription charges and stores fee from retailers that choose its services. In the first year of operation, Amazon will not charge any monthly subscription and has also slashed its charges for storage.
As a launch offer, Amazon.in is also offering free home delivery for a limited time and cash on delivery. When the offer expires, only orders above Rs 500 will be home delivered free of charge.
'We're excited to get started in India and we will relentlessly focus on raising the bar for customer experience in India,' said Greg Greeley, Vice President of International Expansion at Amazon.com.
Amazon.com is present in nine country such as the US, Canada, Japan, China and the United Kingdom. India is tenth marketplace for Amazon and the company will offer seven million books and 12,000 movies to start with.
The company will begin operations with just two product categories — books and movies — and later on add mowre selections such as camera and mobile phones.
'E-commerce is at a very nascent stage in India and we see it as a exciting opportunity for us. There's lot of opportunity for innovation and to provide value to our customers,' Amazon India Vice President and Country Manager, Amit Agarwal said.
He said that the company, which had entered the Indian online shopping with its price aggregator and selection website Junglee.com in February 2012, will continue to focus on both the ventures.
'We wanted to be in India. We are entering now because we are ready. We have long-term view on this...We have long-term vision for both Amazon.in and Junglee.com. We will invest in both,' said Agarwal.
Amazon's announcement comes nearly three months after its Vice-President Paul E Misener met Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma seeking relaxation in FDI policy in retail. Currently, India allows 100 per cent FDI only in business to business (B2B) e-commerce and not in retail trading online.
Agarwal said Amazon complied with the existing India FDI policy on retail.
'Marketplace is an established and allowed operating model and several marketplaces are already operating in India,' he said.
Amazon.in will not sell products directly to customers but only provide a platform to sellers, he said, adding the company was offering an online marketplace for buyers and sellers.
Despite being a late entrant in the e-commerce space, Agarwal feels that there is enough room for many players in many formats.
When asked about investments, Amazon officials declined to disclose the capital that the company has put in India.
Amazon will charge a referral fee, monthly subscription charges and stores fee from retailers that choose its services. In the first year of operation, Amazon will not charge any monthly subscription and has also slashed its charges for storage.
As a launch offer, Amazon.in is also offering free home delivery for a limited time and cash on delivery. When the offer expires, only orders above Rs 500 will be home delivered free of charge.
'We're excited to get started in India and we will relentlessly focus on raising the bar for customer experience in India,' said Greg Greeley, Vice President of International Expansion at Amazon.com.
Amazon.com is present in nine country such as the US, Canada, Japan, China and the United Kingdom. India is tenth marketplace for Amazon and the company will offer seven million books and 12,000 movies to start with.
Next Story
