Amazon battles rivals in India with its low-cost clothes shop, Bazaar.

Amazon's new "Bazaar" store in India offers affordable and trendy fashion and lifestyle products, intensifying competition against rivals Flipkart and Ajio, owned by Walmart and Reliance respectively, in the fast-fashion market.

Travon Stracke

April 06, 2024

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The new shop has been released on the India Android app of the leading e-commerce company globally. According to a previous TechCrunch article, Amazon started hiring vendors for the new site in February and offered them "hassle-free" delivery, no referral fees, and access to a large consumer base.

The firm states on a support website that customers may purchase anything from jewelry, purses, and traditional and western dress to apparel, accessories, and a wide range of household products including cookware, towels, bed linens, and décor pieces.

According to brokerage company Bernstein, the rising need for inexpensive fast-fashion is propelling purchases on several Indian shopping applications, therefore it is imperative for Amazon to dominate a market where it has historically had difficulty.

The balance of e-commerce categories in India is shifting, with a diminishing representation of mobile and consumer electronics. In a report last month, Bernstein analysts stated, "Fashion has experienced the strongest growth since FY19 and currently holds the highest category share."

"Trendy" t-shirts priced at 129 Indian rupees ($1.55) and footwear for $3 are among Bazaar's options.

Amazon considers India to be one of its most important international markets, having spent over $11 billion there thus far. Amazon's cloud division, AWS, continues to top the Indian market, while its e-commerce division is ranked second, trailing only Flipkart.

CEO Andy Jassy revealed intentions last year to invest $12.7 billion in AWS in India by 2030. During the same time frame, he also committed over $2 billion to the e-commerce company.

In recent times, India has witnessed a notable surge in the fast-fashion e-commerce sector, with local businesses finding motivation from global trailblazers such as Zara, H&M, and Uniqlo. Although Reliance's Ajio, which has taken up nearly 30% of the industry in only a year, is a growing competitor for Flipkart, which now dominates the fashion e-commerce space through its ownership of Myntra, Bernstein reports.

Last year, Ajio opened Ajio Street, a fast-fashion website where a variety of apparel and accessories are available for as little as 199 Indian rupees ($2.4). The portal promises a simple returns procedure, waives delivery fees, and assures the "lowest price" for its items.