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Day 1 of The Indian Startup War Stories: Flipkart vs. Amazon India – The Battle That Changed E-commerce In 2007, two ex-Amazon employees, Sachin and Binny Bansal, launched Flipkart from a small apartment in Bengaluru. Their mission? To make buying books online easy in India. No one knew that in just a few years, Flipkart would be at war with the very company that inspired them—Amazon. What started as a simple e-commerce platform quickly turned into a billion-dollar battlefield. --- The Early Days – Flipkart's First-Mover Advantage India’s e-commerce scene was almost nonexistent when Flipkart started. People didn’t trust online shopping. Cash on delivery (COD) wasn’t a feature—it was a necessity. Flipkart cracked the code: Built its own supply chain to ensure deliveries. Introduced COD, making online shopping feel safe. Focused on customer service, winning trust. By 2012, Flipkart was dominating, while Amazon was still figuring out its India strategy. But then, the real war began. --- Amazon’s Entry – The Game Changes In 2013, Amazon officially launched in India. And it didn’t hold back. Pledged to invest billions in India. Offered deep discounts and massive product selection. Used its global expertise to optimize logistics. Suddenly, Flipkart wasn’t the king anymore. It had to fight back. --- The Cash Burn Era – Who Can Spend More? E-commerce isn’t just about selling—it’s about who can lose money the longest to win the market. Flipkart raised billions from investors like SoftBank and Tiger Global. Amazon had Jeff Bezos' war chest. The result? A price war that Indian consumers loved. Flash sales, deep discounts, and insane offers became the norm. Big Billion Days vs. Amazon Great Indian Festival—festivals turned into battlegrounds. Sellers got squeezed as platforms fought for customer loyalty. For years, it was a bloodbath. --- The Turning Point – Walmart Joins the War In 2018, Walmart bought Flipkart for $16 billion, making it a direct battle between two U.S. giants—Walmart vs. Amazon. Flipkart got the cash it needed to survive. But Amazon wasn’t backing down. Today, the war continues: Flipkart dominates fashion (Myntra) and budget shopping. Amazon leads in premium categories and subscriptions (Prime). Both are fighting for India’s next 500 million shoppers. Who wins? That’s still undecided. But one thing is clear: this war changed Indian e-commerce forever. --- This was just Day 1. Tomorrow, we dive into Zomato vs. Swiggy – The Food Delivery Bloodbath. Follow Vishu Bheda now—because the biggest battles are yet to come.