Amazon To Explore Business Opportunities In Indian SMEs

The India wing of the $75-billion global e-commerce giant, Amazon, will explore business opportunities in India's 35-million small and medium enterprises. It is also planning to carry out India-specific innovations. Amazon, which entered the Indian e-commerce space in June last year, faces tough competition from domestic e-tailer Flipkart.

In India, Amazon will set up performance centres, upgrade logistics services, and develop mobile platform and new tools and techniques to help small and medium businesses prope growth.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos said that certain India-specific innovations, like the Easy Ship services, where Amazon picks up the products from a seller and transports them to the desired destination, can be incorporated into its international strategy. Innovations will continue to remain a crucial part of the Amazon's strategy.

Amazon's interest in the small and medium enterprises has been echoed by several indigenous e-tailers. While Snapdeal recently claimed that it is about to reach the 100,000-seller mark, Flipkart has been collaborating with industry bodies like FISME and NCDPD to penetrate the SME clusters.