Ecom firms eye the next 500 million shoppers, chase Meesho's playbook

The Indian consumers' focus on value has pushed Amazon to develop tools such as value dashboards and gamified in-app experiences - innovations now being adopted in other markets

On a humid afternoon in Malleshwaram, a northwest Bengaluru neighbourhood bustling with local eateries and silk saree and jewellery shops, Jamil Ghani watched a shopper compare shoe prices on Amazon against local stores. The worldwide vice-president of Amazon Prime had flown in from Seattle to India to meet the teams here and understand consumer behaviour. Later that day, at Asha Sweets, Ghani experienced India’s digital payments revolution firsthand: he tapped Amazon Pay via UPI, and Amitabh Bachchan’s voice boomed from the speaker, “You have paid 110 rupees.” 

 

The moment captured the reasons India has become central to Amazon Prime’s global