COVER STORY RETAIL WARS
THE TWO AMERICAN retail giants have fought pitched, bruising battles on their home turf, and in markets around the globe. Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, and Amazon, the e-commerce behemoth, have crossed swords once more, this time in the fastest growing major economy, India.
Jeff Bezos-owned Amazon, with its smart technology-backed consumer solutions, has always had the upper hand. It has left Walmart little choice but to join the digital bandwagon to grow. In the last couple of years, Walmart has made a bevy of online acquisitions across the world, from Jet.com in the US to JD.com in China. The most recent is, of course, the $16 billion (₹1.07 lakh crore) investment in Indian online retail major Flipkart – its costliest acquisition so far. Despite these expensive…
