Amazon India today announced the launch of the third season of Amazon Global Selling Propel Startup Accelerator (Propel S3) – an initiative designed to provide dedicated support to emerging Indian brands and startups to reach customers around the world. The Propel S3 will support up to 50 D2C startups launch in international markets and create global brands from India.
Participants can earn AWS Activate credits, advertising credits, and one year of logistical and account management assistance worth over $1.5 million. The top 3 winners will get $100K equity-free grants. Amazon will also connect participating entrepreneurs with revenue-based-financing providers like Klub and Velocity, who will offer selected offers to scale their businesses.
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The applications for the Amazon Announces Propel Startup Accelerator open today and will close on April 30, 2023. It will culminate in a demo-day where participants will get a chance to pitch their business propositions to leading VC firms and get a shot at funding to expand their operations.
As part of the Propel S3, Amazon has constituted a mentorship board consisting of Amazon leaders from India and across the world, VC partners and senior industry leaders who will engage with emerging brands and provide them tailored resources, 1:1 mentorship and workshops on the global demand patterns and insights on building successful exports business through ecommerce. Amazon will also host sessions focused on peer learning by inviting veteran entrepreneurs and Propel Alumni to help participating startups network and learn from their existing ecosystem.
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Bhupen Wakankar, Director Global Trade at Amazon India said, “We had started the Global Selling Propel Accelerator to provide emerging companies an opportunity to bring their business propositions to life and create globally popular brands from India. In the first two seasons, we saw great interest, ideas and entrepreneurial spirit with more than 1500 startups applying for the program. The season 3 is bigger and better with expanded range of benefits and support to help 50 startups from India launch in global markets this year. This program is a key part of our commitment to enable $20 billion in e-commerce exports from India by 2025.”
Udit Sood, Co-Founder EcoRight – one of the winners of Propel Accelerator Season 2 said, “The program helped us interact with Amazon leaders and other experts which was critical in planning our international expansion. It is perhaps the most effective program for brands aiming to go global. After winning the season 2, we have set up operations in more than 10 countries with Amazon and are managing it seamlessly sitting in India. We are excited by the response we are getting from global customers and are looking forward to further build on our presence in other markets.
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More about the Propel Startup Accelerator Season 3
The entries for the Propel Startup Accelerator Season 3 opens today until 23rd April 2023. The interested startups can log on to http://www.amazon.in/propel and complete their application. Startups in the consumer products space with a vision to expand their business to global markets can apply to be a part of the accelerator program. The entries will be evaluated by an Amazon led cross-disciplinary panel on the basis of the business idea, scalability and strength of the business plan/model, business metrics in launched markets, founding team credentials amongst others. Top 150 applicants will be inducted into a 1-month bootcamp where they will receive handhold support, marketplace insights as well as compliance and logistics support to launch in at least one global market. 50 applicants will be shortlisted as finalists and inducted into the Propel startup accelerator Season 3.
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About Amazon Global Selling
Amazon Global Selling is a flagship program that helps lower the entry barrier for Indian MSMEs to start or expand their exports business using ecommerce. The program was launched in India in 2015 to support Indian exporters to reach customers worldwide through Amazon’s international websites and marketplaces. It provides an avenue for businesses of all sizes to build global brands. Today there are more than 1 lakh exporters across India on the program, showcasing millions of Made in India products to customers in 200+ countries and territories across the world. Many of these businesses are first generation entrepreneurs and emerging brands. Amazon Global Selling has been witnessing remarkable growth and Indian MSMEs exporting through the program have surpassed $5 billion in cumulative sales till now. Amazon has pledged to enable $20 billion in cumulative exports from India by 2025.
