Exactly a week before its Great Indian Festival kicks off, Amazon has sounded the bugle in the battle for the Indian consumer. The e-commerce giant has announced deep discounts across various categories of products, triggering an immediate reaction from offline retailers who fear loss of business due to the “predatory pricing” practices of e-ecommerce giants. In a conversation with , the Jeff Bezos-owned company said it will give discounts of up to 40 percent on mobile phones and accessories, and laptops.
Discounts on top television brands will go as high as 65 percent while those on washing machines, refrigerators and air-conditioners will higher still at a whopping 75 percent. As part of its festive discount scheme, 5G-enabled handsets will be offered at price points as low at Rs 8,999. A minimum of 50 percent off will be offered on mattresses and furniture and 40 percent on home appliances and cookware.
As part of its offers on fashion and beauty products, Amazon will have a discount of up to 80 percent. Price cuts of up to 50 percent will also be available on premium watches and up to 40 percent on luxury fragrances. Amazon will also for the first time introduce Korean skin care products to its customers in India.
Amazon’s artificial intelligence bot ‘Rufus’ has been tuned to help customers with shopping navigation. The offers have been panned by offline retailers who claim they do not have the ability to match the deep discounts being offered by Amazon, Flipkar.