Amazon India signs MoU with postal department for increasing customer reach

Amazon and India Post's partnership goes all the way back to 2013, with the e-commerce giant using the vast postal network for transporting parcels across India

Amazon India has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Department of Posts (DoP) to increase Amazon's reach to customers including in more remote locations, the Ministry of Communications announced in a press statement on Friday, October 04, 2024.

Smartphone with Amazon logo is seen in front of displayed Indian flag in this illustration taken, July 30, 2021. (Dado Ruvic/Reuters)

Amazon and India Post already have a longstanding partnership that goes all the way back to 2013, with the e-commerce giant using the vast postal network for transporting parcels across India.

The MoU was signed by Venkatesh Tiwari, Director, Operations, Amazon Seller Services Pvt Ltd, in New Delhi with Kushal Vashist, General Manager, Parcel Directorate, Department of Posts.

What are the benefits for Amazon and the postal department from their MoU?

The MoU is for “enhancing business operations, capacity sharing, and network utilization,” the statement read.

Amazon will primarily get increased access to the postal department's more than 1.6 lakh post offices, which cold increase its reach even to more remote parts of the country.

The statement also says there will be “synchronization of logistics operations, knowledge-sharing, and capacity-sharing opportunities,” with both Amazon and the postal department to conduct quarterly reviews to monitor the progress of the collaboration.

The Department of Posts will gain through increased revenues from parcel transmission and delivery, and may also gain enhanced expertise when it comes to e-commerce logistics, which could help make its operations more efficient.