CXOToday has engaged in an exclusive interview with Saurabh Srivastava, Vice-President, Categories, Amazon, on this year’s festive season is set to be the biggest for Amazon
- When does the Amazon Great Indian Festival start and how can customers benefit from the Amazon Great Indian Festival 2024?
The Amazon Great Indian Festival 2024 starts on September 27, with a 24-hour early access for Prime members. Customers can expect amazing deals, blockbuster entertainment, and exciting new product launches across multiple categories such as smartphones, fashion, beauty, large appliances, and more. Additionally, Amazon is offering a 10% instant discount with SBI Debit and Credit Cards and Credit EMI, as well as No-cost EMI options on various purchases. Prime members will also be able to enjoy 5% unlimited cashback on shopping with the Amazon Pay ICICI credit card.
- With festive season around the corner, how is Amazon ensuring a seamless shopping experience for customers across all pin codes?
Customers are enthusiastic for festive shopping upswing this year, revealed a study conducted by Ipsos Research Private Limited, commissioned by Amazon India. 89% respondents expressed their excitement for the upcoming festivities with 71% indicating their intent to shop online. Amazon.in emerged as a preferred online shopping destination, with over 73% of respondents trusting Amazon for their festive needs.
To ensure a seamless shopping experience across all pin codes, we have added three new fulfillment centres to our existing pan-India operations network that consists of over 43M cu feet of storage space, sortation centers in 19 states, about 2,000 delivery stations, Amazon Air, our partnerships with Indian Railways, India Post, and much more. We’ve also created more than 110,000 seasonal job opportunities across our operations network to meet the increased customer demand during the upcoming festive season. These opportunities include direct and indirect jobs across India in cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow, and Chennai, among others.
- How is Amazon leveraging AI/ML to enhance customer and seller experience?
Innovation is at the core of our strategy. This year, we’ve introduced AI-Generated Review Highlights, which summarize customer reviews to help users make faster, informed decisions. We’ve also launched Rufus, a conversational shopping assistant powered by Generative AI. Rufus enables natural language interactions within the Amazon app, making it easy to ask product-related questions, get recommendations, or compare products. Whether typing or speaking, customers can now enjoy a more intuitive shopping experience, further enhanced by AI-powered tools like personalized recommendations and Alexa for seamless shopping assistance.
- Can you tell us about Amazon’s efforts to empower small and medium businesses in India?
At Amazon, we are invested in supporting businesses of all sizes, from small and medium businesses to emerging entrepreneurs to established brands. With 1.6 million seller partners, Amazon offers various initiatives to help SMBs grow through e-commerce. Our recent efforts include reducing selling fees across multiple categories on Amazon.in, allowing sellers to expand their product offerings and prepare for the upcoming festive season. With the changes, sellers on Amazon India will benefit from a drop in selling fees ranging from 3% to 12% across various product categories.
Additionally, programs such as Karigar, Saheli, Launchpad, and Local Shops focus on SMB digitization, helping businesses increase visibility and connect with customers across India.
- The festive season is important for the Indian diaspora overseas. How is Amazon enabling Indian sellers to reach this global audience and cater to their festive needs?
During the festive season, Amazon actively supports Indian sellers to reach global customers. With Amazon Global Selling, we aim to help thousands of Indian businesses reach over $13 billion in total e-commerce exports by 2024. Since its inception, more than 150,000 exporters have participated in the initiative, cumulatively selling more than 40 crore ‘Made in India’ items on over 18 Amazon international platforms. The program has remarkable adoption with sellers participating from over 200 cities in India. During the festive season, we work closely with Indian exporters to pinpoint international holiday shopping trends, simplify shipping processes, and promote their products effectively. There is a strong demand for traditional Indian clothing, trendy jewellery, scented incense, decorative oil lamps, and other celebration-related products among the Indian community living abroad.
- What were some of the milestones from festive period last year and do you see yourself surpassing those numbers this year?
In 2023, we witnessed a record of more than 1.1 billion visits with 4 million+ new customers shopping on Amazon India for the first time. The biggest ever in history! Further, 80% of our customers who shopped came from tier 2-3 cities reiterating our strong capabilities of delivering across all serviceable pin codes in India. We also saw the highest-ever Prime sign-ups in a single day this season along with the highest seller participation along with 5,000 new launches from top brands. Almost half of all orders from Prime members were delivered within 48 hours of making a transaction during Amazon Great Indian Festival 2023. We are hoping for this to be the biggest Great Indian Festival ever.
- What are some of the customer trends you expect to see this year and how are you gearing up for the same?
We are observing several key trends shaping the online shopping landscape this year. One major trend is the influence of Gen Z shoppers. They’re not just purchasing products—they’re setting trends, particularly around sustainability, personalization, and brands that align with their values. In response, we’re rethinking how we present products and brands to cater to this influential group. Another notable trend is premiumization. Categories like jewellery, premium smartwatches, and apparel are seeing unprecedented demand, especially during festivals and wedding seasons.
To gear up for these trends, we’ve launched new initiatives, including varied Amazon Prime membership tiers to cater to different customer needs. We’ve also increased our focus on faster delivery. Today, we offer same-day delivery of close to 1M+ products and 1-day delivery across 4M+ products, free with no minimum cart value. Additionally, we’ve rolled out Creator University and Creator Connect, providing a platform for Gen Z and Alpha creators to engage, learn, and thrive in the evolving creator economy.
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