Amazon extends four-hour delivery to 50 locations in India

Amazon India has expanded its same-day delivery option for Prime members, by taking it up a notch, to four-hour deliveries, in 50 cities across the country.

The e-commerce major will offer quick-delivery services in towns beyond metros including Surat, Mysuru, Mangaluru, Bhopal, Nashik, Nellore, Anantapur, Warangal, Ghaziabad, Faridabad and Patna. It will deliver across categories including wireless, consumer electronics, books, toys, media, kitchen, among others. 

The announcement comes at a time when the quick-commerce market in India has been gaining popularity, with startups and e-commerce players such as Flipkart, Zomato's Blinkit, Zepto, Dunzo, and Swiggy's Instamart battling to acquire market share and promise delivery within minutes.

Amazon's rival Flipkart had launched Flipkart Quick in 2020 in Bengaluru, which it expanded to 14 cities including Kolkata, Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad and Pune in 2021. It allows consumers to order online and get delivery within the next 90 minutes or book a two-hour slot for categories across groceries, snacks, mobile and electronics.  

Amazon first introduced same-day delivery in India in 2017 as a part of its Prime membership, its loyalty programme. For four-hour delivery, it is using specialised buildings to fulfil these orders strategically located to cover different parts of the city to optimize faster delivery speeds.  

"We’re able to do so by storing the needed items in specialized buildings closer to customer location and enabling our delivery network to be in close proximity to customers and Prime members. Same-day delivery also provides great job opportunities for associates, especially since the site locations are within the city,” said Abhinav Singh, director, customer fulfilment, supply chain & Amazon Transportation Services, Amazon India.   

The quick commerce market in India is set to touch $5.5 billion in market size by 2025, growing 15 times its current size and leading other markets, including China, in terms of customer adoption, according to a note by RedSeer.  

Swiggy’s Instamart, Zepto, Blinkit currently all promise delivery within minutes. The startups, which are burning capital to add customers, have also faced criticism on the sustainability of the business models.