Amazon taps long-time exec to lead India business as competition intensifies

Amazon has named long-time executive Samir Kumar as the new head of its India consumer business, a month after its domestic business' head resigned amid intensifying competition in the key market.

Kumar, who has been with the e-commerce giant for 25 years, will become country manager for India, the company said.

This role would be in addition to Kumar's existing responsibilities overseeing Amazon's consumer operations in the Middle East, South Africa, and Turkey, the company said.

The leadership transition was announced by Amit Agarwal, Amazon's senior vice president for emerging markets, in an email to staff. The move follows the sudden exit of Manish Tiwary, the previous head of Amazon's India consumer business, last month.

"India remains an important priority for Amazon, and I am super excited about the opportunity ahead as we continue to transform lives and livelihoods," said Agarwal in a statement.

Despite investing over $7 billion in India, Amazon is facing challenges in smaller cities and towns, where local competitors Flipkart (owned by Walmart) and Meesho (backed by SoftBank) have gained stronger market positions.

Meesho has overtaken Amazon in terms of monthly active users on mobile apps, according to Morgan Stanley. Bank of America analysts report that Flipkart boasts over 50 million daily active users on its mobile apps in India, while Amazon has fewer than 40 million.

In urban India, Amazon is facing growing competition from quick-commerce companies such as BlinkIt, Swiggy, and Zepto, which offer deliveries within 10 minutes.

Flipkart recently launched its own quick delivery service in Bengaluru. The company also started testing four-hour deliveries on Myntra, the nation's top online apparel and fashion platform.

Amazon has not launched quick commerce offerings in India so far.