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Tag: Big Bazaar

  • Big Bazaar used meme based marketing to promote sale

    Big Bazaar used meme based marketing to promote sale

    MUMBAI: Big Bazaar is known for its blockbuster sales which attract customers in millions. For this public holiday sale from 28 April to 2 May, it also gave an opportunity to customers to buy online. This was done with the intent to reach every nook and corner of the country where its stores were not present. 

    Big Bazaar created immense visibility for its public holiday sale campaign and pushed visitors to try online shopping by partnering with RVCJ Media to create a buzz on social media. The single point agenda for all communication was to crowd source, drive awareness and encourage shopping both in-stores and online.

    Big Bazaar wanted to drive purchases of a variety of products like kitchen appliances, suitcases, cookware, trimmers, bedsheets, television sets, mobile phones and other electronic goods. It tried static /video memes and WhatsApp conversation videos to highlight deals and specific offers, across these categories.

    The campaign went live on all social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube, on 22 April, and RVCJ leveraged topical content and trends around conversations, for e.g. it created memes featuring IPL stars, and actors from the hit film Sonu KeTitu Ki Sweety, to relate with customers and create visibility for their client. Using witty pop culture references, RVCJ created funny static memes, video memes in Hindi also dubbed in variety of regional languages like Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Bengali, WhatsApp conversation GIF videos and articles to craft a 360-degree campaign.

    RVCJ also created a hilarious sketch based ‘hero video’ to anchor the campaign, featuring well known artists and familiar faces. The theme of the hero video was ‘Indians During Sale’ and showcased quirks and people’s eagerness to get the best discounts during an e-commerce sale and integrated bigbazaar.com cleverly, within the narrative. The ‘Indians During Sale’ video performed exceedingly well, getting 1.5 Million views on FaceBook alone, and crossing 512K views on YouTube.

    Future Group India group head for digital Pawan Sarda says, “We partnered with RVCJ media for them being one of leading content aggregators when it comes to crowdsourcing, creating snacky and engaging content which cuts across geographies and age segments. Its high rate of organic engagement being another critical factor worked well for the campaign.”

    A high frequency of a variety of interesting content ensured that the message reached the maximum number of people. For instance, a static meme using a picture of Ranveer Singh for a before and after effect, to push the sale of a trimmer was liked by over 51k people. And overall, the 14 static meme based campaign got a total reach of 1.59 million on Facebook, with an engagement of 21.2 per cent, and reached out to an additional 2.5 million people on Instagram and 91K people via Twitter. And nine video memes achieved a good amount of traction with 2.5 million views on Facebook and seven video memes distributed via Instagram fetched 1.2 million views.

    RVCJ Media founder and CEO Shahid Javed Ansari adds, “Big Bazaar has partnered exclusively with RVCJ on all digital platforms for the past few months and this is the fourth campaign we are working on together. Our ability to tap into what is trending, our understanding of what works with Indian audiences and our pan-Indian regional language reach helped us create awareness about Big Bazaar’s e-commerce portal. In the past we have generated 48 per cent of traffic for them during a sale, using viral memes and other popular content like sketch based humorous videos. We hope to continue doing good work for them in the future.”

  • Big Bazaar urges people to be free spirited

    Big Bazaar urges people to be free spirited

    MUMBAI: As we celebrated the festival of colours, hypermarket chain Big Bazaar had launched a campaign that gives a glimpse into the spirit of Holi.

    Executed by Prime Focus Technologies, the TVC is part of Big Bazaar’s ongoing campaign – Har Tyohaar Mein Big Bazaar. The campaign depicts how over the years Big Bazaar has played an integral role in making all festivals and occasions even more special for its customers.

    The ad film features a free-spirited young girl, who despite being cautioned by her mother, joins in the colourful festivities of Holi with all her heart and soul. The film’s jingle encapsulates the joys of coming together to celebrate India’s colourful festival with enthusiasm.

    Speaking about the campaign Big Bazaar chief marketing officer Jishnu Sen says, “Festivals are special occasions that bring families and friends together and we are glad to participate with our consumers in their endeavour of making these gatherings beautiful memories to cherish. India is a land which celebrates many cultures and colourful festivals and our campaign is a small reflection of our festivities.”

    Talking about working on the ad film, PFT vice president, creative services Bhaskar Sitholey adds, “Holi is all about coming together as a community and immersing oneself in colours and optimism. The TVC aims to capture the delights of celebrating this festival, with Big Bazaar at the core of all the revelry. It celebrates the spirit of sharing with loved ones in its true sense and infuses beautifully.”

  • Law & Kenneth Saatchi & Saatchi, FB India collaborate on Sabse Saste 5 Din

    Law & Kenneth Saatchi & Saatchi, FB India collaborate on Sabse Saste 5 Din

    MUMBAI: Law & Kenneth Saatchi & Saatchi partnered with Facebook and Big Bazaar for the World First 24 Hour Facebook Live Shopping Entertainment Show. The campaign broke through shopping festival clutter and bridged the gap between a digital first millennial consumer and the offline retail giant.

    This was the first time in the world that a retail giant reached out to its customers individually on their phones – not just with exciting exclusive deals but with live entertaining content crafted around those deals.

    Big Bazaar revolutionised the way Indians shopped back in 2006 when it started one of the country’s biggest shopping festivals—the Sabse Saste Din Sale. For the last 12 years, every year Sabse Saste Din takes over the country around 26th January.

    Campaign link:

    https://www.facebook.com/events/1787556964652314/

    Future Group group head – digital Pawan Sarda said, “24 Hours Facebook live for “Sabse Sasta 5 Din” is one of the most exciting marketing ideas we have built in recent times. Thanks to Facebook and Law & Kenneth Saatchi & Saatchi to come together with us to make this happen. It was a challenging project as we had to create content for 24 hours. We created an entertaining programme with leading Bollywood and television influencers for our viewers and with M-coupons we were able to drive them to the stores. The most exciting part though, is that 10 million people viewed it real time. I am not sure if anyone has done anything like this before, but I can imagine this to be the biggest online to offline initiative.”

    Added Law & Kenneth Saatchi & Saatchi managing partner Anil K Nair, “Our biggest challenge was how to make the country’s biggest shopping festival interesting for millennials, especially considering habitual discounting has become such a hygiene across both offline and online retailers. We were very clear that we didn’t want to use social media for the sake of it. This 24-hour live entertainment event turned a monotonous transactional exchange into an authentic engaging experience for our customers and fans. We couldn’t have done this without the Big Bazaar team and Pawan Sarda supporting this maverick idea all the way. It is a matter of great pride that an Indian brick and mortar retail brand is showing the way to the rest of the world by creating such a world class contextual branded content and digital event.”

    Millennials are now surrounded by shopping festivals from every offline and online retailer, turning exciting deals and discounts into an annual monotonous ritual. Big Bazaar wanted to break out of this clutter and create a more authentic connect with millennials who spend hours on social media everyday looking for ways to keep themselves entertained.

  • Big Bazaar launches game to promote R-day sale

    Big Bazaar launches game to promote R-day sale

    MUMBAI: Hypermarket chain from Future Group, Big Bazaar, has created a mobile game to promote its mega property, ‘Big Bazaar Sabse Saste 5 Din’. Designed and executed by L & K Saatchi & Saatchi, Big Bazaar’s innovative deal game is set to transform the shopping experience in India. Consumers and gamers can play the game and win shopping vouchers worth up to Rs 1 crore.

    The ‘Deal Skyfall Sabse Saste 5 Din’ mobile game has the group’s iconic Chidya as a playable character. The game consists of five levels and will change from one to the other on preset scores. The speed at which the products appear on screen will keep on increasing along with the frequency of obstacles as the level increases. The game will have various deals. Each deal will have its own value/points. The user will be awarded a reward for crossing a predefined score and they can redeem the voucher code from the rewards section of the game on 23 January 2018.The game is available on the App Store, Playstore and bigbazaar      

    Future Group’s head of digital Pawan Sarda says, “With Deal Skyfall – Sabse Saste 5 Din game we want to reach out to the hidden consumer in everyone. Be it a gamer, a next gen consumer, mobile addicts or our huge base of loyal consumers, the game can be played by one and all. It is a simple and rewarding game, where your points in the virtual world get you a chance shop in the real world for free.”

    L & K Saatchi & Saatchi Managing Partner Anil K Nair adds, “The game is a unique way in which a household brand like Big Bazaar is promoting one of its biggest properties. We have kept the game simple and it is sure to get many addicted and win as many vouchers they like.”

    Revolutionising the shopping experience in India, Big Bazaar started the first ever Republic Day Sale in 2006, which has over the years come to be known as Sabse Saste Din. Celebrating the 12th successful year of Sabse Saste 5 Din, Big Bazaar has owned the period around Republic Day and has been a trendsetter.

  • Big Bazaar TVC shows its participation in all festivals

    Big Bazaar TVC shows its participation in all festivals

    MUMBAI: Big Bazaar, a leading supermarket chain from Future Group, has launched a campaign that captures how all festivals are celebrated in a culturally diverse country such as India.

    A part of the ongoing campaign, ‘Har Tyohaar Mein Big Bazaar’, the popular brand has launched another part to the campaign named ‘Desh Ek Utsav Hazaar, Har Tyohaar Mein Big Bazaar.’

    Created by DDB Mudra West, the campaign is not just a communication thought, it’s a philosophy that demonstrates how Big Bazaar celebrates every festival in India from regional festivals to Diwali.

    DDB Mudra West group creative director Nilay Moonje said: “The film and the song in the TVC is a not just a creative interpretation of this fact but a grand celebration of our rich festive heritage too. We wanted it to be about positivity and energy, and that’s where Benny Dayal added his magical touch to it.”

    The intention of the brand is to let every Indian experience not just the festival that they celebrate but also the ones they don’t. 

    Capturing all festive celebrations in a nutshell, the film features people from all age groups sharing some sweet moments and shows how Big Bazaar seamlessly blends with these moments. 

    Big Bazaar CEO Sadashiv Nayak says, “There is inherent goodness in every festival. Big Bazaar too is an integral part of every festival – be it through food, fashion or home.”

    The campaign is being promoted on TV, print, on all Big Bazaar social media platforms, OOH and instore promotion across all Big Bazaar outlets in the country.
     

  • Google helps Big Bazaar drive customers

    Google helps Big Bazaar drive customers

    MUMBAI: Big Bazaar, one of the leading hypermarket chains in India with a presence in over 120 cities with 225 stores, has worked closely with Google to create ‘Smart Search.’

    Big Bazaar realised that their customers seek solution to every query on Google Search and wanted to position the brand as the solution to every household product query. The challenge was to add newer segment young customers who seek offers and information online and drive them to the stores.

    Ignition Labs, Google India’s creative solution team, conceptualised and helped execute the campaign, which led to Big Bazaar giving exclusive offers to Google search users for one day in the first weekend of each month, when the propensity to spend is higher.

    Over 1,80,000 discount coupons were distributed against each Google search in three days, which saw an increase of more than 30,000 people visiting the Big Bazaar stores.

    Future Group group head – digital Pawan Sarda says, “Search and explore is a way of life in today’s time and Google Search is one of the important destination for it. Smart Search has helped us translate the customer’s intent into a purchase at our stores and has definitely helped us acquire newer & younger customers.”

    Google India industry director Nitin Bawankule said, “Big Bazaar and Google came together to conceptualise this innovative campaign, ultimately driving trackable offline footfalls and sales.”

    Further it used innovative features like Click to Missed-Call for a seamless experience of delivering coupons, instead of filling long forms. This reduced the lead generation process from filling a form to a simple missed call.

  • fbb: WB, Sikkim & AP girls win at Colors Femina Miss India

    MUMBAI: India’s most exciting, glamorous and credible beauty pageant Colors Femina Miss India 2017 is underway and continues its talent hunt in at fbb / Big Bazaar at Salt Lake City, Kolkata.

    Miss India is the most sought after glamorous beauty pageant in the country that turns dreams into reality. fbb, Fashion hub of India has been the face of affordable fashion destinations in India since 2008. ‘Colors’ is Viacom18’s flagship brand in the entertainment space in India. Jio, the Digital Content partner, enabled it to reach many more fans across India!

    The auditions received an overwhelming response witnessing more than 80 contestants participating from all parts of the state. The encouraging response assured a wide coverage of the state, in terms of ‘talent scouting’. These auditions at the fbb / Big Bazaar stores were cheered and supported by fbb customers and the public.

    The judge for the auditions included — Priyadarshini Chatterjee – She is an Indian model who was crowned fbb Femina Miss India World in 2016. She is the first to represent India at Miss World 2016 from a North East state. She was born in Dhubri in a Bengali family and was brought up in Guwahati city in the state of Assam. She believes that we all are born with a purpose and as we grow up, we find out what that purpose is. Luckily for her, she discovered early on, that she wants to do something for the community in her hometown Guwahati. She is currently endorsing a number of brands and is face of a number of renowned designers including Sabyasachi Mukherjee.

    With a new and improvised format this year, Miss India in its 54th edition will be touring to all 30 states of the nation and to crown 30 state representatives who will then compete for the coveted Miss India crown. The top 3 of West Bengal and Sikkim and the top girl from Arunachal Pradesh have been given a golden ticket to the East zonal crowning ceremony to be held at Swissotel, Kolkata, on 28 March. Here the most deserving candidate from each of the 13 states i.e. Miss India Arunachal Pradesh, Miss India Assam, Miss India Bihar, Miss India Chhattisgarh, Miss India Jharkhand, Miss India Manipur, Miss India Meghalaya, Miss India Mizoram, Miss India Nagaland, Miss India Odisha, Miss India Sikkim, Miss India Tripura and Miss India West Bengal will represent their state at the grand finale which is going to be held in Mumbai in June.

    For the very first time, the pageant will host mentors for each zone who will guide the contestants to merit. To take charge of the proceeding for the East Zone we have none other Dipannita Sharma. She enthusiastically quoted, “The girls who are chosen are beautiful and talented. I feel their inherent simplicity is their strength. I expect this strength to come forth and help them forge their path in the pageant”.

    The details of the top three winners of West Bengal include:-
    • Shivankita Dixit
    • Ankita Kumari
    • Ruchira Mookherjee

    The details of the top three winners of Sikkim include:-
    • Roshni Ghimirey
    • Prerna Pradhan
    • Amela Norku

    The details of the top winner of Arunachal Pradesh include:-
    • Licha Thosum

    The auditions were concluded with the felicitation of the top three contestants, where the fbb / Big Bazaar Store Manager Sankar Banerjee presented a bouquet to each of the winning contestants. India’s leading fashion hub – fbb – has once again partnered this year to be the title sponsor of this beauty pageant. fbb is a premier platform for fashion brands in urban India, and so this association is perfectly in sync with the brand’s objective to make India more fashionable.

  • TV production temporarily impacted by cursed Rs 500-1000 notes

    TV production temporarily impacted by cursed Rs 500-1000 notes

    MUMBAI: In what may be called a Herculean step, PM Narendra Modi banned Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000 notes as of midnight intervening 8 and 9 November. His live television broadcast came as a surprise to millions of unassuming Indians and the world at large, to say the least.

    Once understanding of the gravity of his announcement hit, throngs rushed to the ATMs, super markets, and chemist shops in a bid to rid themselves of the cursed notes which were to transform into waste paper overnight. In fact, retail shopping giant Big Bazaar, luxe watch chain Ethos, among many others seized this opportunity and allowed shoppers in till midnight, rightly expecting a rush. Petrol stations saw long queues even as late as the night of 9 November as desperate Indians tried to shed their 500 and 1000 notes. Foreign tourists despaired about the dud notes they had in their possession, as they neither hold bank account or post office accounts; the only currency they had was useless to them.

    By demonetizing Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, Modi has taken a bold stance to curb the raging black money menace and counterfeit currency that has been gnawing at the country’s economy for decades. The speed at which everything had transpired was astonishing, and many netizens lauded the move on social media.

    While this historic move is expected to contribute greatly towards nation-building, the transition phase will not be smooth. With banks shut for another day, ATMs dysfunctional temporarily until new legit denominations are restored in the banking system, life is proving tough for the public, to put it mildly. Different sectors have braced up for the varied impact this decision will bring, including the Indian television production industry.

    “For production houses like us, there are certain requirements for action props — flowers, food items, etc, which we usually buy in cash. Moreover, everyone’s travel and other conveyance compensation are also paid in cash. Not to mention the daily labour and daily-wage workers that a shoot employs… so yes, this ban has definitely created an a problem, especially with the banks shut,” explains Sol Production’s Fazila Allana.

    “Our ongoing shooting in Delhi for the show ‘Small Money Big Makeover’ which airs on FYI is currently stuck. It requires us to go out and buy stuff from the local market, and with today’s cash crunch situation, that is difficult,” she adds.

    Allana isn’t hindered by that, however, as she strongly believes that it is only temporary. “In the long term, I believe it is good for the industry. “A lot of these union workers often used to insist on cash payments, but now this sector can be regulated more effectively.”

    Asked if any of the long-running daily shows would be affected by this temporary turmoil, Allana reassured that it was highly unlikely. “Mega serials, as they are often called, will be the least affected as their shoots and contracts with artistes etc mostly operate on a monthly basis. They might be slightly inconvenienced by the sudden prop requirements, but that is all.”

    Allana, however, expressed concern over the lack of clarity on the upper limits of withdrawal for companies and the corporate, as it will be next to impossible to function if the cap for company usage is also Rs 2000 per day.

    BBC Worldwide India SVP & GM Myleeta Aga has welcomed the Prime Minister’s bold move calling it ” good to happen” to our industry.

    “There will be inconvenience, but we should all manage the inconvenience. It won’t stop our work. We mostly function with partners with whom we have long-term associations. They too understand the current situation, and are cooperating accordingly. We can use credit notes and the right available denominations for the next few days. As long as they are providing a legit service and are being paid in a legit way, there is nothing to worry about,” she adds.

    “The industry simply needs to be mindful while making cash payments in these two to three days,” says the optimistic CEO of The Contiloe Entertainment, Abhimanyu Singh.

    Asked if the TV industry will be majorly affected by this crackdown on black money hoarders, Singh says, “I don’t think the TV industry has something to worry about, most of our accounts are clean and every transaction is accounted for.”

    “In the short run, businesses will have to compromise with the change but I have faith the government has thought this out, and will effectively take action to normalise the situation. I don’t believe the prime minister would want businesses to shut down,” Singh added.

  • TV production temporarily impacted by cursed Rs 500-1000 notes

    TV production temporarily impacted by cursed Rs 500-1000 notes

    MUMBAI: In what may be called a Herculean step, PM Narendra Modi banned Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000 notes as of midnight intervening 8 and 9 November. His live television broadcast came as a surprise to millions of unassuming Indians and the world at large, to say the least.

    Once understanding of the gravity of his announcement hit, throngs rushed to the ATMs, super markets, and chemist shops in a bid to rid themselves of the cursed notes which were to transform into waste paper overnight. In fact, retail shopping giant Big Bazaar, luxe watch chain Ethos, among many others seized this opportunity and allowed shoppers in till midnight, rightly expecting a rush. Petrol stations saw long queues even as late as the night of 9 November as desperate Indians tried to shed their 500 and 1000 notes. Foreign tourists despaired about the dud notes they had in their possession, as they neither hold bank account or post office accounts; the only currency they had was useless to them.

    By demonetizing Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, Modi has taken a bold stance to curb the raging black money menace and counterfeit currency that has been gnawing at the country’s economy for decades. The speed at which everything had transpired was astonishing, and many netizens lauded the move on social media.

    While this historic move is expected to contribute greatly towards nation-building, the transition phase will not be smooth. With banks shut for another day, ATMs dysfunctional temporarily until new legit denominations are restored in the banking system, life is proving tough for the public, to put it mildly. Different sectors have braced up for the varied impact this decision will bring, including the Indian television production industry.

    “For production houses like us, there are certain requirements for action props — flowers, food items, etc, which we usually buy in cash. Moreover, everyone’s travel and other conveyance compensation are also paid in cash. Not to mention the daily labour and daily-wage workers that a shoot employs… so yes, this ban has definitely created an a problem, especially with the banks shut,” explains Sol Production’s Fazila Allana.

    “Our ongoing shooting in Delhi for the show ‘Small Money Big Makeover’ which airs on FYI is currently stuck. It requires us to go out and buy stuff from the local market, and with today’s cash crunch situation, that is difficult,” she adds.

    Allana isn’t hindered by that, however, as she strongly believes that it is only temporary. “In the long term, I believe it is good for the industry. “A lot of these union workers often used to insist on cash payments, but now this sector can be regulated more effectively.”

    Asked if any of the long-running daily shows would be affected by this temporary turmoil, Allana reassured that it was highly unlikely. “Mega serials, as they are often called, will be the least affected as their shoots and contracts with artistes etc mostly operate on a monthly basis. They might be slightly inconvenienced by the sudden prop requirements, but that is all.”

    Allana, however, expressed concern over the lack of clarity on the upper limits of withdrawal for companies and the corporate, as it will be next to impossible to function if the cap for company usage is also Rs 2000 per day.

    BBC Worldwide India SVP & GM Myleeta Aga has welcomed the Prime Minister’s bold move calling it ” good to happen” to our industry.

    “There will be inconvenience, but we should all manage the inconvenience. It won’t stop our work. We mostly function with partners with whom we have long-term associations. They too understand the current situation, and are cooperating accordingly. We can use credit notes and the right available denominations for the next few days. As long as they are providing a legit service and are being paid in a legit way, there is nothing to worry about,” she adds.

    “The industry simply needs to be mindful while making cash payments in these two to three days,” says the optimistic CEO of The Contiloe Entertainment, Abhimanyu Singh.

    Asked if the TV industry will be majorly affected by this crackdown on black money hoarders, Singh says, “I don’t think the TV industry has something to worry about, most of our accounts are clean and every transaction is accounted for.”

    “In the short run, businesses will have to compromise with the change but I have faith the government has thought this out, and will effectively take action to normalise the situation. I don’t believe the prime minister would want businesses to shut down,” Singh added.

  • Future group inks pact with Amazon India

    Future group inks pact with Amazon India

    MUMBAI: Future Group has entered into a strategic partnership with the online retail giant Amazon India under which the e-tailer will sell the retail group’s products online.

     

    The deal will leverage the product knowledge, brand portfolio and sourcing base of the Future Group, and the e-commerce platform, customer base and reach of Amazon.in.  The deal comes soon after Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos visit to India during which he met Future Group group CEO Kishore Biyani.

    Talking about the collaboration Biyani comments, “The bottom line in each of our retail success stories is ‘know your customer’. Insights into the soul of Indian consumers – how they operate, think, dream and live – helps us innovate and create functionally differentiating products and experiences. Partnership with Amazon, which obsesses to be earth’s most customer centric company, will enable us to leverage their strengths, investments and innovations in technology to reach out to wider set of consumers across India.”

    According to the joint statement issued by the companies, the partnership will initially focus on the Future’s Group fashion brands and will subsequently cover all other categories. The company’s current portfolio has over 40 brands and around 10,000 unique styles that will be exclusively retailed online through Amazon.in platform. Once operational, customers on Amazon.in platform can buy Future Group’s fashion brands Lee Cooper, Converse, Indigo Nation, Scullers or Jealous21, among others.

    Moreover, Amazon India will also assist Future Group in accelerating new product development in categories that are currently not served by traditional retailers.  

    Commenting on the latest alliance in the e-commerce space, Trust Research Advisory (TRA) CEO N Chandramouli reckons, “Today the e-commerce space is no longer limited by geographic boundaries in a sense as fixed as it used to be a few years ago. With its current offering Amazon already caters to a massive Indian.

    “Future group which has been a leading retailer in the country understands the soul of Indian consumers. As one of India’s retail pioneers with multiple retail formats, they connect a diverse and passionate community of Indian buyers, sellers and businesses. The collective impact on business is staggering: Around 300 million customers walk into Future group stores each year and choose products and services supplied by over 30,000 small, medium and large entrepreneurs and manufacturers from across India, so with the Amazon tie up, this number is set to grow and venture into the on line spectrum,” he adds.

    Partnership between the two organisations will bring together the best of consumer insight from the online and offline world and create the omni channel approach to serving customers, according to the company statement.

    According to Team Pumpkin co-founder Swati Nathani, “The partnership is definitely a win win situation for both the companies. Amazon will get the support of millions of Indian consumers who have already trusted Future Group brands and Future Group will foray into e-commerce space again, but this time with the support of global leaders in this category. This partnership will not only lead to more people to purchase their favourite brands online, but will also get another door for Future Group to generate  .”

    “This definitely calls for more competition and harder marketing techniques. Future Group has been at the forefront of offline retail in India and its presence on amazon.in shall definitely be a cause of worry to some other leading e-commerce players,” she adds.

    Amazon.in will also collaborate with Future Group brands in promoting the existing and new brands in markets, explore co-branding opportunities and accelerate new product development in categories which are currently not served by retailers. The companies will also explore synergies in areas such as distribution network, customer acquisition and cross promotions, the statement added.

    Commenting on the new partnership, Amazon India vice president and country manager Amit Agarwal said, “We are excited to collaborate, leverage each other’s unique strengths and serve customers across India. The product portfolio of Future Group, their innate understanding of the Indian consumer mind set and our ability to serve and deliver a convenient, easy, trusted and reliable delivery experience to a nationwide set of customers is a win win for all.”

    Amazon.in started its Diwali sale on 10 Oct, but did not go with the kind of heavy discounts that Flipkart and Snapdeal did last week.

    “This is the coming together of two trusted brands, Amazon and Future. Even more, they are in complementary spaces of businesses which is bound to create a strength much larger than the sum of the individuals. Not only will Amazon get leadership due to the extremely well oiled supply chain, but Future will get a business outlet, that may be larger than many of its retail stores together. I am sure the competition is beating themselves as to why they didn’t think of this one,” Chandramouli comments.

    “The partnership must not be seen as an attempt at ‘indianisation’ of Amazon. It is much more than that – this partnership stands on extremely strong business logic,” he adds.

    Future Retail is the flagship company of Future Group and owns the Big Bazaar chain of retail stores. Future Lifestyle Fashions has a portfolio of over two dozen fashion and lifestyle brands.

    Biyani recently criticised Flipkart and other e-commerce retailers in India for the deep discounts they offered during a promotional sale for the festival of Diwali, saying it would hurt other retail channels.

    “Kishore Biyani reportedly lashed out against Flipkart.com, due to selling of goods below cost price, which according to him was unfair. He doesn’t seem to be against the e-commerce concept per se. Future Group already had its own portal www.futurebazaar.com, which was one of the first online e-commerce portals in India, “Nathani opines.

    The Future Group’s electronics store, Ezone, already has an online presence and adopts a hybrid approach to sales involving both online as well as traditional brick and mortar stores. The group has also been speaking about ramping up its presence online.

    In September, Tata Group Company Infiniti Retail, which operates consumer durables and information technology (IT) retail chain Croma, and Snapdeal.com also announced a similar strategic partnership through which goods available at Croma stores were made available for purchase through Snapdeal.com.

    Amazon chief Bezos, during his visit to India, spoke about the potential he saw for the fashion industry in the online space and the deal with Future Group could help boost its battle against Indian competitors like Flipkart that acquired online fashion retailer Myntra. Amazon is also reportedly in talks to acquire online fashion retailer Jabong.