Amazon has announced news that it is investing in Shoppers Stop, Ltd., an Indian retail firm looking to boost revenue and increase its store count by 25 percent. In exchange, Amazon gets to broaden its in-nation reach to smaller Indian towns as it attempts to influence commerce in the second most populated nation on Earth.
The investment — worth 1.8 billion rupees ($28 million) — will leave Amazon with a 5 percent stake in the retail company.
Amazon, for its investment, will set up “Amazon experience centers” across Shoppers Stop locations in India. The retail experience centers will give customers a chance to tangibly try out Amazon merchandise in the network of 80 Indian retail stores nationwide (soon to be 100, with Amazon’s latest investment) that Shoppers Stop currently operates, according to Govind Shrikhande, managing director of the retail company.
Shrikhande further noted that the deal will help the Shoppers Stop tap into Amazon’s massive network of 400 million monthly viewers. Amazon has allocated $5 billion toward expansion into India and has been diligently seeking dominance in the arena. Its online shopping ventures into China — which is largely dominated by Alibaba — have been less than successful.
“The partnership with Amazon will really accelerate our revenue from online sales, and we expect it to double every year for the next three years,” Shrikhande said in an interview on Sunday. “Amazon will give us space in its fashion segment online, where its users will have access to about 400 brands from our catalog.”
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