Amazon enables pickups for online groceries at More outlets

Items can now be pickup up from stores within two to three hours of placing order (Representative Image: AP)

Amazon India has enabled pickups for its online grocery orders from its More stores in Bengaluru, to make competitive moves in the e-commerce segment against market-holders such as Grofers, BigBasket, and Flipkart.

Items can now be picked up from stores within two to three hours of placing order and at present does not have cash on delivery option, The Economic Times reported.

The service allows customers to book a two-hour slot for pickup from 6 am to 12 am midnight as per convenience. It is available for free on orders above Rs 600, and has delivery fee of Rs 29 on lower billed orders. There is no minimum order value for the service, a company spokesperson told the paper.

They added that the company was “ensuring smooth and seamless experience for customers” through “significant” investments in operation capabilities for faster deliveries.

Amazon acquired More retail chain from the Aditya Birla Group in 2019 in partnership with Samara Capital.

Notably, this is similar to its move in some US cities, where it allows pickups of its Amazon Fresh online orders at its Whole Foods outlets. The retail giant bought Whole Foods in 2017 for $13 billion.

Industry watchers and analysts told the paper the development is “adding another model to the hyper-local play for e-grocery orders and delivery” but is a wait-and-watch game, as India is a different market compared to the US, it added.