Amazon entered India’s instant delivery market in June 2025 with Amazon Now, starting in Bengaluru and later expanding to Delhi-NCR.

The company, competing with Flipkart, is prioritizing rapid delivery as part of its ecommerce growth strategy.

Amazon Now plans to establish 300 dark stores in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, and Bengaluru by 2025, while rivals Blinkit, Swiggy Instamart, and Zepto already operate over 1,000 each.

Amazon Seller Services, the company’s India marketplace unit, reported a 14% rise in operating revenue for FY24, narrowing its net loss by 28%, with revenue growth outpacing the previous year but below highs seen during the pandemic.

Prime Day this year was Amazon’s biggest in India, with orders peaking at 18,000 per minute, with strong demand from smaller towns and tier-II/tier-III cities.

Amazon plans to focus its quick commerce expansion on metros, citing limited demand in smaller towns.

🔗 Source: The Economic Times

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ Amazon’s late market entry strategy faces steeper challenges in capital-intensive quick commerce

Amazon’s delayed entry into India’s quick commerce reflects a familiar pattern, but this market presents unique scaling hurdles compared to traditional e-commerce.

When Amazon first entered India’s e-commerce market, the company successfully adapted by introducing cash-on-delivery options and local partnerships to build trust with consumers who had low credit card penetration1. However, quick commerce demands immediate infrastructure at scale, something that’s harder to build gradually.

Amazon plans to operate 300 dark stores by 2025-end, while current market leader Blinkit already operates 1,544 stores as of June 2024[Original article]. This infrastructure gap is significant because quick commerce relies on hyperlocal fulfillment centers to achieve 10-minute delivery promises.

The challenge is amplified by the market’s explosive growth trajectory. Quick commerce gross merchandise value surged from $0.10 billion in FY20 to $3.3 billion in FY24—a 3,200% increase over just four years2.

Unlike traditional e-commerce where Amazon could leverage existing logistics networks, quick commerce requires dedicated micro-warehouses within delivery radius of customers, making catch-up strategies more capital-intensive and time-sensitive.

2️⃣ Quick commerce growth trajectory suggests winner-takes-most dynamics despite Amazon’s optimism

Amazon’s belief in “multiple winners” may underestimate how quickly market share is consolidating in India’s quick commerce sector.