Online Marketplace Amazon Invests $23 Mn In India’s Wholesale Vertical

In a bid to gain an edge over competitors, ecommerce giant Amazon has reportedly invested a fresh capital of $23.5 Mn (INR 160 Cr) in its wholesale arm, amazonbusiness.in.

Amazon Wholesale (India) Pvt. Ltd was founded in 2013 by Seattle-based tech company Amazon and functions as the B2B portal of the company in India. It also facilitates the sale of smartphones to sellers on Amazon India.

According to its official website, the B2B arm currently serves small and medium business (SMBs) in Bengaluru and Mangaluru, and deals in office products, stationery, household supplies, healthcare products, personal care, food, and beverages.

Amazon Business has signed up corner stores, pharmacies and small outlets to order from its platform, extending credit sources to these SMEs through a partnership with banks and non-banking financial institutions, according to an official statement.

Amazon Business currently accounts for more than 10,000 sellers in Bengaluru, as per an official statement. The wholesale platform works with 10,000 sellers in Bengaluru and registered annual sales of $1Bn in 2015, as per a report by ET.

Earlier in September, Amazon infused $17 Mn in its Indian wholesale arm to  increase the transaction of smartphones via its B2B portal, in compliance with the revised FDI norms.

In June 2016, Amazon announced that it would infuse $3 Bn in India in the next few years to take on its rivals. In July, it launched its biggest Fulfillment Centre in Sonipat near New Delhi.

Earlier this week, it also unveiled its Launchpad programme in India. The move is aimed at helping Indian startups to increase their customer base globally.