Amazon India is looking at ways to expand its customer base in the country and as such has made some partnerships in the country to show its ambition. The company is partnering up with. Vodafone India, which stands as the country’s second largest telecom operator, by customer base alone. Through the deal, Amazon would give customers a chance to touch and feel the experience of using smartphones like the OnePlus3, which would be sold exclusively on the platform.
As of now, Vodafone and Amazon have launched a pilot program in Bengaluru, providing 40 of the telecom’s stores with its products. The partnership with Vodafone follows the expansion of Amazon assisted shopping program, Udaan, which was expanded to over a 1,000 outlets in the II and III tier cities of the country.
Vodafone refused to comment on the deal, but an Amazon spokesperson confirmed the partnership.
The Amazon partnership sees Vodafone stores feature a display case where mobile phones will be listed on Amazon, and also one product specialist will be available in every store, trained by Amazon. In the stores, customers will get a chance to try out products. They can also order their products online from the shop, and they can also get help in any way they need after purchasing the device.
The project is believed to be in the pilot stage at the moment, but many believe it will be rolled out across the country in no time. The 10,000 stores of Vodafone nationwide, will definitely give Amazon the edge they have been looking for.
The move is also seen as a way to catch up with its rival in the smartphone space market, Flipkart. Amazon has tied up deals with Lenovo, Redmi, OneUs, the Coolpad range, and the MotoG4 Plus. Smartphones make up one of the largest shares of the gross merchandise value for online retailers in India.
Amazon says that the aim of the program is to get in touch with customers who still don’t believe in online shopping. Arun Srinivasan, category leader of consumer electronics at Amazon India, said in an email that the deal was a way the company was providing this certain group of people with a chance to experience all the benefits which are involved with shopping on Amazon.in and also in a way build their trust in the brand.
