Three startups including Solethreads, EcoRight and Go Desi were named the winners of Amazon Global Selling Propel Startup Accelerator (Propel Accelerator) Season 2 and they cumulatively got $100K in equity free grant from Amazon and $300K in AWS Activate credits.
The Propel Accelerator provides support to emerging Indian businesses and startups in the consumer products space to launch in international markets and create global brands through Amazon’s Global Selling program. The second season of Propel Accelerator was launched in February 2022 in partnership with Accel, DSG Consumer Partners, Fireside Ventures and Sequoia Capital India.
More than 1,000 startups and emerging brands from across India had applied for the Propel Accelerator, out of which, 15 were selected as finalists including Almo, Avishkaar, Belora, EcoRight, Eske, Go Desi, Greencure, Hathmic, IVEI, Masterchow, Minimalist, Shumee, Sleepy Owl Coffee, Solethreads and The Artment.
Criterion
The panel evaluated the entries on a variety of parameters including business idea, scalability and strength of the business plan/model, business metrics in launched markets, founding team and credentials.
Amit Agarwal, SVP India and Emerging Markets, Amazon said, “The true success of the Propel Accelerator reflects in the growing number of startups and D2C brands adopting it to launch in global markets. This program is a key part of our pledge to enable $20 billion in cumulative exports by 2025 and contribute to the government’s vision of taking local, global.”
As a part of the Propel Accelerator program, a cohort of select startups receive 1:1 mentorship from industry leaders, a platform to interact with investors and receive handholding support in going global. Slurrp Farm, Sirona and Wellbeing Nutrition were the winners of the program’s inaugural season in 2021.