The general narrative is that what is good for some of the developed markets in the West may not hold the same potential in the Indian market. But ecommerce giant Amazon may be out to prove this perception wrong. Having forayed into the groceries and household consumables, Amazon is now betting big on its US model of AmazonFresh in India, expanding its offerings and possibly foraying into fresh produce, which could include fruits, vegetables, meat and so on.
According to a Reuters interview with Amazon India head Amit Agarwal, Amazon appears to have been encouraged by the response it has received for the ‘Pantry’ vertical it started some months ago, where your daily groceries like pulses and cosmetics like soaps and detergents are all being offered with delivery the next morning after the date of the order. Some products are being delivered within 2 hours as well, in association with local vendors in select cities and localities.
However, Amazon India’s plans for AmazonFresh, Agarwal has said, may not happen overnight, but going ahead he sees the distinct possibility of the fresh produce category with 2-hour delivery being offered to Indian customers.
According to Amit, this category is poised to account for nearly half of Amazon India’s turnover. Amazon has 100 million registered customers in India and it is targeting to double that to 200 million in the foreseeable future. Amit has indicated to Reuters that the $5 billion committed for the Indian market, by Amazon Founder and CEO, Jeff Bezos need not be the limiting factor. If it entails investments of even more funds, Amazon will be prepared to do so.
The Indian ecommerce business has suddenly turned the darling of the international players, what with Walmart about to acquire Amazon’s biggest rival Flipkart and the very fact that the who’s who in the investment world, such as SoftBank, Tencent and Alibaba among others have already poured in their millions in the Indian market is proof of this.
That Amazon attaches a huge importance to the Indian market has been stressed by none other than Bezos himself in a communication to Amazon’s shareholders. In this, he has mentioned that the number of people signing up for the Amazon Prime membership in the first year of its introduction has been the highest in India compared to any other country where Amazon has Prime membership.