Brands
ASICS launches online marketplace in India
MUMBAI: Fitness brand ASICS has announced the launch of its e-commerce website for the Indian market. The newly launched website is a one-stop destination for all ASICS products across its categories and has been specifically introduced to meet the growing demand in the country with a focus on catering to the fast-paced lifestyle of millennials.
A company statement shares that the e-commerce site is a step to make the brand more accessible to consumers in tier II and III markets, strengthening its reach in the country by extending a safe avenue to access authentic brand offerings. The new e-commerce portal is designed to make ordering, deliveries and payments easier and faster for all ASICS consumers.
ASICS India MD Rajat Khurana said, “With the launch of the website, we are looking to rapidly expand our consumer base and delight users across new and upcoming markets. The launch of the website allows us to be a step closer to our consumer so that we can directly and constantly communicate with them.”
ASICS brand ambassador Bhuvaneshwar Kumar said, “It is very important for an athlete to have the right kind of fitness gear for an effective training and ASICS not only provides the necessary support but has also devised path-breaking technologies which can impact one’s performance greatly. Considering the fast-paced lives in today’s world, it’s of great convenience to everyone to be able to shop the best – quality and authentic ASICS products online. The launch of the retail website makes it easier for fitness enthusiasts to shop for good sportswear at their ease.”
The new ASICS website will host all the latest collections and favourites from the brand portfolio, including many global top sellers, like GEL Kayano, Hyper GEL, GEL KENUN, GEL Nimbus among other popular styles.
In the future, the website will have an ASICS One ID integrated on the website, which will enable consumers to buy apparels and shoes from all three brands; ASICS, Onitsuka Tiger, and ASICSTIGER all in one cart.
Brands
Amazon Q1 revenue jumps 17 per cent to $181.5bn, profit soars to $30.3bn
AWS surges 28 per cent while AI bets reshape cash flow and drive future growth
SEATTLE: Amazon kicked off 2026 with a strong first quarter, reporting a 17 per cent year-on-year jump in net sales to $181.5 billion, up from $155.7 billion in the same period last year, as growth across cloud, advertising, and retail continued to gather pace.
Excluding a $2.9 billion favourable impact from foreign exchange, sales still rose a solid 15 per cent, underlining broad-based demand across its businesses.
The company’s cloud arm, Amazon Web Services, remained the star performer, with revenue climbing 28 per cent to $37.6 billion. Operating income for AWS reached $14.2 billion, up from $11.5 billion a year ago, reinforcing its role as Amazon’s profit engine.
Meanwhile, North America sales rose 12 per cent to $104.1 billion, while international revenue increased 19 per cent to $39.8 billion, or 11 per cent excluding currency effects.
Profit growth outpaced revenue. Operating income climbed to $23.9 billion from $18.4 billion last year, while net income surged to $30.3 billion, or $2.78 per share, compared with $17.1 billion, or $1.59 per share, in the first quarter of 2025. A significant boost came from $16.8 billion in pre-tax gains linked to Amazon’s investment in Anthropic.
Cash generation also strengthened, with operating cash flow rising 30 per cent to $148.5 billion over the trailing twelve months. However, free cash flow dropped sharply to $1.2 billion from $25.9 billion, largely due to a $59.3 billion increase in capital expenditure, primarily tied to artificial intelligence investments.
Commenting on the results, Amazon president and CEO Andy Jassy said, “We’re making customers’ lives easier and better every day across all our businesses, and their response is driving significant growth.”
He added that AWS growth of 28 per cent marked its fastest pace in 15 quarters, while Amazon’s chips business crossed a $20 billion annual revenue run rate, growing at triple-digit rates. Advertising revenue also crossed $70 billion on a trailing twelve-month basis, and store unit growth hit 15 per cent, its highest since the tail end of pandemic lockdowns.
Artificial intelligence remained front and centre of Amazon’s strategy. The company deepened partnerships with OpenAI, Meta, NVIDIA and Uber, while expanding its proprietary chip ecosystem including Trainium and Graviton.
Amazon revealed that it has already deployed over 2.1 million AI chips in the past year and plans to roll out more than one million NVIDIA GPUs starting in 2026. OpenAI alone is expected to consume around two gigawatts of Trainium capacity for advanced AI workloads beginning in 2027.
The company also highlighted rapid adoption of its AI services, with Amazon Bedrock processing more tokens in the first quarter than in all previous years combined, and customer spending on the platform rising 170 per cent quarter-on-quarter.
Beyond cloud and AI, Amazon continued to scale its consumer and logistics ecosystem. It delivered more than one billion items via same-day or overnight delivery so far in 2026 and expanded ultra-fast delivery services across multiple global markets. Prime Video also saw strong engagement, including sports streaming growth and box office success for original content like Project Hail Mary, which has grossed nearly $615 million globally.
Looking ahead, Amazon expects second-quarter net sales to reach between $194 billion and $199 billion, representing growth of 16 per cent to 19 per cent year-on-year. Operating income is projected between $20 billion and $24 billion.
Despite macro uncertainties ranging from foreign exchange fluctuations to global economic conditions, Amazon appears to be leaning into its biggest bets yet. With AI investments accelerating and cloud demand holding firm, the company is positioning itself not just for growth, but for what it calls the next big inflection in technology and commerce.
