e-commerce
Amazon India slashes fees to boost seller growth
Zero referral fees now on over 12.5 crore products under Rs 1,000, Easy Ship fees cut by over 20 per cent from 16 March 2026.
MUMBAI: Amazon India just dropped fees like confetti because when sellers save up to 70 per cent, even the checkout cart starts celebrating. Amazon India today announced a major fee reduction to supercharge growth for lakhs of sellers, expanding zero referral fees coverage more than 10x from 1.2 crore products in 2025 to over 12.5 crore products priced under Rs 1,000 across 1,800 plus categories. Effective 16 March 2026, the changes also include a more than 20 per cent cut in Easy Ship fees for products below Rs 300, plus savings of up to 90 per cent plus on selling fees for the second unit when multiple units ship in one box.
Easy Ship where sellers store products at their premises while Amazon handles pickup and delivery remains a favourite for small businesses and those scaling up, thanks to lower upfront logistics costs. The revisions aim to make selling more profitable, especially for entrepreneurs in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities.
Amazon India director of selling partner services Amit Nanda said, “Building on last year’s fee reductions, we are now expanding that commitment to benefit a much larger cohort of sellers. By eliminating referral fees across 1,800 plus categories and reducing logistics costs, sellers can save up to 70 per cent in fees.”
Illustrative per-unit savings (effective 16 March 2026, products under 500g):
Fashion jewellery necklace set (Rs 999, Easy Ship), total fees drop from Rs 324 to Rs 100, a 69 per cent reduction (save Rs 224).
Earphones (Rs 798, Fulfilled by Amazon), total fees fall from Rs 248 to Rs 109, a 56 per cent reduction (save Rs 139).
T-shirt (Rs 299, Easy Ship), total fees reduce from Rs 71 to Rs 56, a 21 per cent reduction (save Rs 15).
Earthen Story (a Bengaluru-based seller) co-founder Ashish Agarwal reflected on last year’s changes, “When Amazon axed referral fees on products under Rs 300 last year, it was a game-changer… The result? 50 per cent explosive growth, with more momentum to conquer even bigger categories.”
Sellers can choose from three fulfilment options, self-ship, Easy Ship, or Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA). The fee cuts reinforce Amazon’s push to pass operational efficiencies back to sellers and customers in one of the world’s fastest-growing e-commerce markets.
In a platform where every rupee saved can fuel the next listing, Amazon isn’t just tweaking numbers, it’s handing sellers rocket fuel to scale faster, sell smarter, and keep the cart rolling.
e-commerce
Instamart and Duolingo launch street spell check campaign for Instaprint
Duo the owl fixes signboard typos across cities to showcase instant printing.
MUMBAI: If spelling mistakes had a sworn enemy, it might just be a bright green owl with a printer. Instamart has teamed up with language learning platform Duolingo for a quirky nationwide campaign that turns everyday spelling errors into a public spectacle while promoting its instant printing service, InstaPrint. The playful activation takes aim at the many misspelled shop boards and public signs scattered across Indian streets. From “saloons” that promise haircuts rather than drinks to menus and posters peppered with punctuation mishaps, the campaign sends Duolingo’s mascot Duo on a mission to restore linguistic order.
Armed with Instamart’s instant printing feature, Duo prints corrected versions of the mistakes on the spot and pastes them over the originals. The result is a series of humorous street interventions that have quickly begun circulating on social media.
Photos and videos of the grammar correcting owl have been widely shared online, with amused users reacting to the unexpected spell check patrol. One user joked, “Ab ayega na maza bhidu,” capturing the internet’s delight at the unusual campaign.
Behind the humour lies a practical message. The activation is designed to showcase the capabilities of Instaprint, Instamart’s printing service that allows users to print documents and posters almost instantly.
The company says the feature is meant for everyday needs such as printing resumes, visa documents or last minute posters without the usual scramble to locate a print shop.
Instamart introduced Instaprint in 2025 across select metropolitan cities including Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi. The service allows users to order printed materials directly through the platform, extending the quick commerce model beyond groceries and household essentials.
By combining Duolingo’s famously persistent owl with India’s street level spelling quirks, the campaign taps into the internet’s long running fascination with grammar mistakes while demonstrating a real world use case for instant printing.
After all, in a world full of typos, sometimes what you really need is a quick printer and a very determined language teacher.
