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For PZ Noorjahan, a Biotechnology student in Kochi, the last mile delivery programme of Amazon called “I Have Space” (IHS) has helped her find out an additional source of income as well as pursue her post-graduate course.
Noorjahan owns the store Za-One Naturals, and joined as a partner in IHS in August 2021 after her father – a delivery partner with Amazon – met with an accident and has been bed-ridden ever since. She joined IHS and started delivering packages on her two-wheeler within a 2-4 km radius of her shop.
“It is not just Noorjahan alone, but several others are benefiting out of Amazon initiatives after the pandemic crippled their business leading to a drop in footfalls in several stores,” said Karuna Shankar Pande, Director, Last Mile Operations at Amazon India.
Growing numbers
Interacting with BusinessLine, he said IHS was launched in 2015 and now has more than 28,000 neighbourhood and kirana partners in 420 towns and cities in its network across the country. Kerala is home to hundreds of IHS stores, and the number is going up.
As Amazon expands its delivery network, the e-commerce giant believes that its IHS programme would enable individuals to unlock their entrepreneurial potential and create immense opportunities to expand their horizons.
According to Pande, Amazon India has launched two all-women partner delivery stations in Kerala in 2021 in Aranmula (Pathanamthitta) and Kodungallur (Thrissur), operated by Delivery Service Partners (DSPs) providing job opportunities to more than 50 women in the region. These stations are completely managed and run by women across managerial and delivery associate roles.
Today, there are five all-women delivery stations that Amazon’s DSP programme operates in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh. The launch of these stations complements the company’s efforts to increase opportunities for women in the logistics sector, he added.
Partner-owned stations
Partnering with small and mid-sized businesses (SMB’s) to deliver packages also provided them with growth avenues. Currently, there is more than 100 delivery service partner-owned stations in Kerala. Overall, Amazon India has more than 1,850 delivery stations both owned and operated by Amazon, as well as Delivery Service Partners in more than 750 cities, he said.
The company also intends to expand Amazon Flex which was introduced in Kerala in March. This will provide an opportunity for individuals to create their own schedule and earn an income during their spare time by delivering packages. More than 65 Indian cities and towns have now been included in the programme, he said.
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