Karnataka govt partners Snapdeal, in process to do with Amazon too

The govt is trying set up a platform for SMEs in the state to sell their goods to the entire world

With a view to gain leverage from the rapid growth of e-commerce in the country, the Karnataka government is parterring with two leading e-retailing companies, Snapdeal and Amazon, to create a platform where the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) of the state can sell their produce.

While the timeline for setting up of the platform is not yet known, Karnataka government's Information Technology (IT) Secretary Srivatsa Krishna said the platform will have several thousands of SMEs as part of it.

"We have reached out to Snapdeal and Amazon. (What we are planning) is a platform to add small and medium enterprises of Karnataka. It will be a marketplace for them to connect with the global market," Krishna said.

"In one step, they (SMEs of Karnataka) can reach the whole world from wherever they are in Karnataka; and we have to take connectivity to every district, going down to every taluk. They can actually be part of the large global market, which I think is a huge step forward," he added.

Confirming the development, a Snapdeal spokesperson said, "We are working with Karnataka government in enabling small and medium sized businesses to sell online and thereby, supply locally but sell nationally. This is in line with the company's vision of creating life changing experiences for small and medium sized businesses."

While Krishna refused to share more details into the project, he said, the platform would be a "replica of Snapdeal", and would be "designed and sponsored" by the state government along with the e-commerce companies.

Krishna added that these platforms would be linked to Snapdeal and Amazon. "For example, there will be a link on Snapdeal webpage to this platform," Krishna said.

On being asked, an Amazon India spokesperson said the company is committed to helping Indian sellers of all sizes to get online and take advantage of the digital economy. "Today, we have an expanding pool of over 9000 sellers who are already growing profitably on our marketplace. We continue to evaluate and work towards enabling more and more sellers in India to benefit from the international and well as the domestic e-commerce opportunity."