These new entities are run by former executives of Cloudtail, as well as of Appario Retail, another company which is still a seller on the platform.
These former employees of Cloudtail and Appario are the chief executives or are holding other top roles at the new seller entities that have taken over various segments of Cloudtail’s business on Amazon India, as per their profiles on professional networking platform LinkedIn.
Appario Retail, a joint venture between the Patni group and Amazon, is among the top sellers on Amazon India. Clicktech Retail, RetailEZ, Cocoblu Retail are among the new sellers which have taken over businesses from Cloudtail.
Cloudtail functioned under a joint venture between Amazon and
founder NR Narayana Murthy’s Catamaran Ventures, but shut operations on Amazon as a seller amid regulatory pressure.
Indian regulations do not permit a foreign-owned entity running an online marketplace and its group companies to own stakes in any seller on the platform, or to have control over their inventory. The government had red flagged proximity between sellers and ecommerce marketplaces, after small traders alleged that ecommerce companies were promoting their preferred sellers on the platforms.
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To be sure, Amazon doesn’t own any stake in the new seller outfits. While having executives with experience in handling seller operations on Amazon would help both the new firms and the platform in quickly integrating the business, they could still be watched closely for any preferred treatment.
A spokesperson for Amazon India told ET that the company doesn’t comment on behalf of its sellers. Emails sent to the new vendors did not elicit a response till press time Sunday.
From mid-level positions like in-stock and vendor managers, all the way to C-suite executives, former Cloudtail employees are in various key positions at the new companies. Mouli Venkataraman, previously an executive at Cloudtail, is now the CEO of Cocoblu Retail, which sells books, apparel, office products and other categories on Amazon India. Former Cloudtail category leader Rehan Shaikh has taken over as the CEO of Clicktech Retail. From their LinkedIn profiles, ET found several other executives across levels in the new seller firms who have previously worked at Cloudtail or Appario.
“It essentially looks like mini Cloudtails and you basically work with the same set of people who are also well oiled with the Amazon machinery. This is largely done to ensure smooth transition and to ensure sales are not affected,” one of the brands selling on Amazon said.
The promoter of the brand recently shifted from Cloudtail to one of the new seller entities.
“Relationships are important here,” said an ecommerce executive associated with prominent brands. “Take the example of Cocoblu, it takes care of books among other categories and this is very important for Amazon … If Amazon is to just re-assign the category to sellers who do not have relationships with publishers, their sales would fall significantly.”
Previously, Cloudtail has come under the scanner for its close links with Amazon. Sumit Sahay, an Amazon executive, became the CEO of Cloudtail in 2017. He spent over four years in the position before moving back to Amazon last year. ET had reported last year in August that one of Amazon’s category leaders, Amandeep Lohan, was appointed as managing director of Appario Retail. Ranjit Babu, the most recent CEO of Cloudtail, has also now gone back to Amazon as a director, selling partner experience.
ET reported on April 25 that Amazon would be absorbing all employees of Cloudtail parent Prione, citing the then CEO Pankaj Jathar’s town hall to employees.
Transitioning out of Cloudtail
But the transition from Cloudtail has not been smooth as multiple brands ET spoke with said they have been facing delay in payments as the new sellers grapple with technological challenges and manpower problems.
ET reported on July 8 that FMCG sales, in particular, had declined on Amazon owing to the transition.
Cloudtail doesn’t sell on Amazon India anymore after the US ecommerce behemoth bought a 100% stake in Prione.
Amazon’s move away from Cloudtail started in March this year after it sent termination notices to merchants and their businesses were transferred to new entities.
As reported by ET, a part of the electronics business of Cloudtail was transferred to VRP Telematics and Dawntech Electronics. Its health and personal care business has been moved to Rocket Kommerce, and the fashion and apparel category to Cocoblu Retail.
These new sellers are backed by various old-economy companies.
ET reported on July 26 that Kolkata-based garment maker Rupa and Company’s third-generation promoters — Siddhant Agarwal and Aparesh Agarwal — have started a new seller business called RetailEZ on Amazon India.
Similarly, Dawntech is owned by South India’s leading real estate company, Salarpuria-Sattva Group. Cocoblu Retail is a newly floated ecommerce seller incorporated last October and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Delhi-based
, which in January received a Rs 350 crore fund infusion by the promoters.
Rocket Kommerce, an established online seller and part of the RK group, has been a seller of OnePlus smartphones on Amazon India before taking up personal care and FMCG business.
VRP Telematics has also been an existing seller on Amazon India and also works for the ecommerce company’s private labels like Solimo and AmazonBasics.
