Why India is the new hotspot for Thrasio aspirants

The Checkout is Tech in Asia’s free newsletter that breaks down the biggest stories and trends in ecommerce. [Read from your browser]( The Checkout 🛒 Welcome to The Checkout! Delivered every Thursday via email and through the Tech in Asia website, this free newsletter breaks down the biggest stories and trends in ecommerce. If you’re not a subscriber, get access by [registering here](. Hello {NAME} , Sometimes, having too many choices is not good. This prinicple is called the paradox of choice, and it can make decision-making extremely hard. Let's say that you need a new knife. So you go online to look for it and end up on Amazon India. But there are hundreds of brands available on the site, so you'll have to sort through so many options just to buy one knife. India’s massive scale is no joke. It has 1.37 billion people, 150 million online shoppers, and an online retail market that is expected to generate US$55 billion in gross merchandise value by the end of this year. The South Asian country is ripe to catch a trend that began in the US: ecommerce roll-ups. Leading the charge is Boston-headquarted Thrasio, which acquires and scales third-party brands on Amazon. Indian entrepreneurs have long been inspired by successful US companies. For instance, Cars24 is the Carvana of India, Ola is the Uber of India, and Flipkart is the Amazon of India. And now, there’s a race to become the Thrasio of India. This year alone, investors have poured in more than US$300 million into India’s startups in this space. What's their goal? To illustrate, an aggregator can consolidate the different knife brands on Amazon India, increase operational and marketing efficiency, and double or triple the revenue. As Samreen Ahmad explains in this week’s big story, India may have all the ingredients to help this model thrive. -- Huong THE BIG STORY  [Roll-up ecommerce flexes its muscles in India]( Image credit: Timmy Loen The Indian market is ripe to become the next roll-up ecommerce hub. DEEP READ 1️⃣ [Mapping the global boom of ecommerce roll-up firms]( It’s a hot and fast-moving space. In this landscape map, we’ve tracked a number of ecommerce roll-up companies in the US, UK, Europe, and Asia. 2️⃣ [The allegedly shady labor practices underpinning Shein’s global fashion empire]( Photo credit: Shein Shein, the secretive ecommerce powerhouse, has turned into a giant that has [surpassed]( even H&M and Zara as the US’ top-selling fast-fashion brand. However, that achievement comes at a costly and deadly price. As detailed in this investigative report by Sixth Tone, Shein’s ultra-fast fashion strategy means troubling exploitation of its suppliers, workers, and warehouse staff. One of its warehouse workers in China described the experience as similar to “getting into a stove.” You can also check out Tech in Asia's previous in-depth report on Shein [here](. TRENDING NEWS Check out Tech in Asia’s coverage of Asia’s ecommerce scene [here](.  1️⃣ [More legal troubles for Amazon in India]( Photo credit: 123rf The US retail titan is investigating the possibility that its legal representatives had bribed government officials. The development was first reported by Indian media outlet The Morning Context. Amazon says it has “zero tolerance” for corruption. Why it matters: It seems that Amazon has run into repeated legal hurdles in India. In February, Reuters ran an [investigative report]( detailing how the ecommerce giant bypassed India’s regulations to favor big sellers. There’s also an anti-Amazon movement in the country, to the point that one merchant is [waging war]( on the ecommerce giant and working to set up a marketplace that sells products from neighborhood shops. Amazon has invested billions of dollars in India since entering the market in 2013. But the company still [trails behind]( Flipkart in market share, and it can expect a tougher race with the arrival of Sea Group-backed Shopee.  2️⃣ [Indonesian ecommerce firm Blibli pushes deeper into groceries]( Blibli couriers transferring packaged products / Photo credit: Blibli.com Blibli announced that it will acquire 51% of PT Supra Boga Lestari, a publicly listed company that operates supermarket brands in Indonesia such as Ranch Market, The Gourmet, and Farmers Market. The deal value is undisclosed but estimated to be worth around US$123 million. Why it matters: Blibli is [ranked only fifth]( in terms of traffic among Indonesian ecommerce platforms, according to data from iPrice Group. The ecommerce firm does not generate as much hype as industry leaders Tokopedia, which made headlines because of its merger with Gojek earlier this year, and Bukalapak, which had a historic IPO last month. But Blibli is backed by Indonesian conglomerate Djarum Group, and that might just be enough to ensure a winning formula. With Blibli's acquisition of Supra Boga Lestari, the platform can push deeper into online groceries. It also [recently partnered]( with Blu, a newly launched digital banking app linked to Indonesia’s largest private lender, Bank Central Asia. The banking giant is a subsidiary of Djarum Group.  3️⃣ [Shopify has beaten Amazon in terms of online traffic]( Shopify's headquarters in Canada / Photo credit: 123rf Shopify’s traffic has surpassed Amazon's for the first time, according to data from Similarweb. As reported by Business Insider, Shopify averaged 1.16 billion monthly unique visitors in the second quarter of the year compared to Amazon’s 1.10 billion. Why it matters: The data further proves that the pandemic has lifted Shopify’s global status. Tech in Asia previously [wrote]( about how sellers in Southeast Asia are also turning to Shopify and other local ecommerce enabling solutions to build and run their independent stores. Shopify does not sell any physical products and therefore can’t launch competing offerings with the sellers that use its platform. However, its business is still small (US$2.9 billion in revenue in 2020) compared to Amazon's (US$386 billion). Amazon can continue to be the industry Goliath, but it’s good for merchants to place their eggs across several baskets amid market uncertainties.  4️⃣ [US food delivery major DoorDash adds alcohol to its menu]( Photo credit: DoorDash The company announced that it has allowed the delivery of alcohol in 20 US states, the District of Columbia, Canada, and Australia. As reported by CNBC, this can potentially reach more than 100 million customers worldwide. DoorDash also delivers groceries on its marketplace. This means drinking-age customers can order alcohol from not just restaurants but also grocery stores and local retailers. Why it matters: DoorDash faces intense competition from UberEats in these markets. Food delivery is widely known as a thin-margin business, and players need to diversify their revenue streams. The company expects alcohol delivery to increase average order values from restaurants by 30%. DoorDash CEO Tony Xu even labeled the move as a “win, win, win for all of our audiences” in an interview with CNBC. Win or not, it’s facing backlash from [anti-addiction groups]( in the US and inviting more regulatory controls. STARTUP WATCH 1️⃣ Evermos - Indonesian sharia-focused social commerce firm [bags $30m]( from UOB, others [Evermos]( lets users resell products to their community via chat apps or social media platforms. The company says its resellers cover over 500 cities and regencies in Indonesia.  2️⃣ Dagangan - Indonesian social ecommerce platform raises [US$11.5 million in series A round]( led by Monk’s Hill Ventures [Dagangan]( targets consumers in Indonesia’s rural areas. The startup works with supply chain drivers, including producers and wholesalers of fast-moving consumer goods, to deliver group orders to consumers within 24 hours. Dagangan has covered more than 5,000 villages in Indonesia so far. It also produces private-label products such as groceries through partnerships with local farmers.  3️⃣ Cars24 - Indian unicorn [gets US$450 million]( from SoftBank, Tencent [Cars24]( is India’s largest online marketplace for used automobiles. The new funds will be used to bankroll its expansion into the United Arab Emirates and Australia. That’s it for this edition - we hope you liked it! Do also check out previous issues of the newsletter [here](. Not your cup of tea? 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