Amazon and Flipkart have the same strategy when it comes to wooing India's 20 million small business owners

• Amazon runs its Amazon Global Selling Program to give Indian SMEs a global stage, Flipkart runs the Samarth initiative through which it onboards SMEs on its platform.
• Both the e-commerce giants are trying to woo the country’s over 20 million small and medium entrepreneurs.
• They are also inking MoUs with state governments.

India’s biggest e-commerce companies Amazon and Flipkart are now competing to – woo over 20 million small and medium sized businesses.

But what is making these giants run after small entrepreneurs, day in and day out?

According to Goldman Sachs, this segment has 20 million people with an annual income of $14,000 each. Not only will their numbers grow to 26 million, their annual incomes will also go up to $23,000 by 2025.

This is a great business opportunity for Amazon and Flipkart to expand their B2B platforms.

While Amazon runs its Amazon Global Selling Program to provide Indian SMEs a global stage; Flipkart runs the Samarth initiative. Flipkart already brought 1,35,000 MSMEs onboard as a part of the initiative.

But interestingly, there’s not much difference in the way both Amazon and Flipkart are going after this business segment.

Working with the government

They are both inking Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) with state governments to work with SMEs. On December 5, both Amazon and Flipkart signed MoUs with the government of Punjab.

Amazon said that it will work with Punjab Small Industries & Export Corporation to conduct workshops for MSME exporters. They will be given access to Amazon’s customers across over 180 countries through Amazon Global Selling Program.

On the very same day, Flipkart too announced its MoU with Punjab government to increase business and trade inclusion opportunities for MSMEs.

As per the agreement, Flipkart will bring the sellers, artisans and weavers onto its Samarth initiative. They will brought into the e-commerce fold and provided national market access, along with training and support.

Similarly, Amazon also inked pacts with the Himachal Pradesh government while Flipkart signed partnerships with Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh governments.

Directly with SMEs

Before it turns into an opportunity, they need to educate SMEs with the nuances of the technological world, and help broaden audiences.

Neither of the giants are shying away from the ground work. Amazon is hosting a two-day summit called Amazon Smbhav.

“Small businesses are the backbone of the Indian economy, contributing to the growth, and embodying the entrepreneurial spirit of Indians. It is imperative that all key stakeholders come together to support the growth and scale of these businesses. Amazon Smbhav will serve as a platform for them to gain the knowledge and achieve that scale - directly from successful industry leaders,” said Gopal Pillai, VP -seller services, Amazon India.

Meanwhile, Flipkart too partnered with industry body FICCI to conduct workshops for SMEs. They will host a series of workshops on the theme of ‘Winning big with e-commerce’ that will help build businesses and increase brand visibility.

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