Amazon, the global e-commerce giant, has pipped Flipkart to becoming the most-visited e-commerce site in India. Early today, Amazon published figures of total unique visitors on site traffic published by comScore, showing a steep upward curve between September and October taking it to the mark of 30,000 unique visitors. In comparison, Flipkart, having maintained a near-monopoly at the top of the chart, has dropped down to second, with about 27,000 unique visitors. Jabong is mentioned as third in the graph distributed around, with a figure of about 21,000, with Snapdeal making up the rear, at around 17,500.
Amazon introduced itself in India, in June 2013, and has since then had an upward journey in a prolific e-commerce segment that has seen the likes of Flipkart and Snapdeal come up with innumerable discounts, flash sales, exclusives and special day sales to attract more buyers online. Two-and-a-half years into the market, and Amazon is already establishing itself in a similar way as its global outreach. As of December 9, 2015, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has been rated by Forbes with an estimated net worth of $59.3 million. He has also been ranked as the 2nd best CEO in the world by Harvard Business Review, right after the late Steve Jobs of Apple.
"It is still day 1, and that is certainly true for us in India"
To celebrate reaching the top on one of the parameters in India, Amazon India has released a note by Bezos, handing out Rs. 200 gift cards to every buyer who makes a purchase of Rs. 500 or more on Amazon.in, today. The offer can be availed even on Cash on Delivery purchases, and makes for a neat, small offering ahead of the holiday season. In the “Thank You” note by Amazon, Bezos states, “This customer response continues to amaze and energise us. To celebrate and thank customers for their confidence in us, we are happy to announce an Amazon.in gift card of Rs.200 for all customers who shop on Amazon.in today. We have built a vibrant marketplace with tens of thousands of sellers offering everyday low prices on India's largest selection of over 30 million products and bringing alive our “Aur Dikhao” promise to customers. We will keep growing our investments in India and continue to work hard for our Indian sellers and customers.”
The September-October period for e-commerce was massive for e-tailers, building up to the Diwali festive shopping season, and Amazon seems to have come out on top of the crop, living up to the promise of its international glory. What remains to be seen is how the Indian giants respond to this, and where Amazon stands in the near future. To quote Amazon, “it is still day 1, and that is certainly true for us in India.”