Future Group Finally Announces Its Online Partner, Inks Deal With Amazon

Kishore Biyani led Future Group has inked deal with online retailer Amazon to sell its products on Amazon.in. The partnership will initially focus on the Future Group’s fashion brands and will subsequently cover all other categories. To start with, Future Group’s current portfolio of 40 brands and around 10,000 unique styles will be exclusively retailed online through Amazon.in platform.

The announcement comes in just a few days after Kishore Biyani met Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, during Jeff’s recent visit to India.

In its filing to BSE, Future Group said, “Amazon India and Future Group today announced a strategic alliance that will leverage the strong product, knowledge, extensive brand portfolio and sourcing base of Future Group, and the economic platform, customer base and reach of Amazon.in.”

“The bottom line in each of our retail success stories is “know your customer”. Insights into the soul of Indian consumers – how they operate, think, dream and live – helps us innovate and create functionally differentiating products and experiences. Partnership with Amazon, which obsesses to be earth’s most customer centric company, will enable us to leverage their strengths, investments and innovations in technology to reach out to wider set of consumers across India,” Kishore Biyani, Group CEO, Future Group said.

“We are excited to collaborate, leverage each other’s unique strengths and serve customers across India. The product portfolio of Future Group, their innate understanding of the Indian consumer mind set and our ability to serve and deliver a convenient, easy, trusted and reliable delivery experience to a nationwide set of customers is a win win for all,” said Amit Agarwal, Vice President and Country Manager, Amazon India.

In September, Tata Group Company Infiniti Retail Ltd, which operates consumer durables and information technology (IT) retail chain Croma, also announced strategic partnership with Snapdeal.com through which Croma’s goods were made available at Croma stores for purchase.

Going forward, Amazon.in will also partner Future Group brands in promoting its existing and new brands in markets, will also look to explore cobranding opportunities and accelerate new product development in categories which are currently not served by Future Group.

Both the companies will also explore synergies in areas such as distribution network, customer acquisition and cross promotions.

In another recent development, Future Group, alleged that online retailers were indulging in predatory pricing after the Flipkart’s Big Billion Day. He said that these online retailers were selling goods below manufacturing price. “This is legally not allowed in the country. Someone can do such undercutting only to destroy competition. Just because they have foreign funding, they can’t kill local trade like that,” said Kishore Biyani.

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