Bangalore: Retail giants Amazon.com is considering a nearly $100 million investment in India’s medicine chain Apollo Pharmacy. The move from Amazon.com comes with an aim to challenge Reliance Industries Ltd and Tata Group in India’s fast-growing drug market. This development was reported Wednesday by the ‘Economic Times’. It cited two people who were aware of plans.
Amazon already delivers medicines in India. The potential investment would come amid rising competition from Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance, which bought a majority stake in online pharmacy ‘Netmeds’. Tata Group, meanwhile, was reportedly in talks to pick up a majority stake in e-pharmacy firm ‘1mg’.
Both Amazon and Apollo Hospitals, which owns Apollo Pharmacy, declined to comment.
The growth of e-pharmacies, however, has left many Indian trader groups feeling threatened. They say online drugstores can contribute to medicine sales without proper verification. They have also said the entry of large players can cause unemployment in the sector.
Amazon’s plan to further expand in India also comes close on the heels of its launch of an online pharmacy to deliver prescription drugs in the United States, increasing competition with drug retailers such as Walgreens, CVS Health and Walmart.