We Have Consistently Supported Free Flow Of Capital: Amazon India Head From launching services like Amazon Prime to products like Fire TV Stick, the company has managed to create a competitive landscape for the home-grown e-commerce firms.
By Sneha Banerjee •
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Jeff Bezos-owned Amazon has been growing from strength to strength in India ever since it made its debut here. The US retailer has been aggressive in pursuing its investment plans in the country in an attempt to capture the top slot in its booming e-commerce sector.
From launching services like Amazon Prime to products like Fire TV Stick, the company has managed to create a competitive landscape for the home-grown e-commerce firms.
In an interview with the Entrepreneur India, Amit Agarwal, SVP and Country Head, Amazon India, briefly shared his perspective on the noise around mergers between local players and capital dumping.
Following are the edited excerpts from the transcript.
What's your perspective on the deal buzz in the Indian e-commerce space? How will these consolidations impact your business strategies in India?
"Our strategy has always been laser focused on the customers. We are always thinking about providing a better service. We are happy with our plans to offer a wide range of products and services to select from with great pricing and will continue to do so. E-commerce is today one of the most exciting space in India with a tremendous opportunity to grow. It's been exciting and humbling for us to witness the way customers have responded to Amazon's innovations here to offer a seamless experience. It has seen us grow consistently and significantly faster than usual in the sector as a whole and rapidly penetrate into more geographies and more categories," he said.
India's e-commerce biggie Flipkart has recently raised $1.4 billion from Tencent Holdings Ltd, Microsoft Corp and eBay Inc, amid all the buzz around the company taking over its closest rival Snapdeal. The news broke alongside the fact that Flipkart would also be acquiring eBay's India operations.
On the other hand, Snapdeal has its own story to tell. The company has seen a string of job cuts recently and has been grappling to raise sufficient amount of funds.
Indian entrepreneurs are often seen complaining about capital dumping, what's your take on that?
"We have consistently supported the free flow of capital as it is good for customers and helps create jobs, develop infrastructure. It also aids the growth of small businesses and facilitates the growth of not only e-commerce in India but also the country's overall economic development.
What are your growth projections for Amazon India?
"Amazon is witnessing an unprecedented growth in India and the rate is the fastest here compared to other countries where the company operates. In a short span, we have become leaders in parameters that customers care about while achieving success in terms of widest options to select from, ever-increasing reach in India and strongest on ground infrastructure to support the business. We have managed to make Amazon the biggest store in India with over 100 million products of which nearly 2 million are available for next day delivery. We have an extensive reach & penetration in far-flung areas of the country and have enabled thousands of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to get their businesses online," he highlighted.
"In less than four years, we have achieved a scale that the e-commerce industry took nearly a decade to reach. In a sector that is reportedly flat or negative, Amazon India has continued to show a growth of 124 per cent YoY for 2016, proving how e-commerce can be a part of customers' daily lives across categories, from mobiles and large appliances to consumables and everyday essentials," he added.
