Patna: Demand for premium products on Amazon is rising in Patna, even as value-conscious shoppers continue to use the platform. Korean and Japanese beauty products and perfumes from the Middle East are among those seeing traction with Amazon attributing the shift partly to faster deliveries.“With speed coming up and people experiencing Amazon, I think we are starting to see a lot more of those premium products selling even in Patna,” Samir Kumar, country manager, India, Amazon, told TOI during a visit to the city on Sunday.Kumar said Amazon had nearly doubled its delivery speed in Patna after strengthening its local network with order volumes also rising. Its Bihar network has one fulfilment centre, three sortation centres, more than 100 delivery stations and over 130 hub partners. The Simli Murarpur fulfilment centre, launched in July 2024, has 2.2 lakh cubic ft of storage capacity.The trend comes ahead of the festive season, when Amazon expects both premium and value products to perform strongly. The platform recorded 2.76 billion visits during the 2025 Great Indian Festival with about 70% of new Prime members coming from Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities.Bihar is also supplying products to Amazon’s wider marketplace. More than 34,000 sellers from the state sell on Amazon.in, while around 1.29 lakh sellers across Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and the Northeast are connected to the platform. Makhana, Madhubani art, Bhagalpuri sarees and Sikki crafts are among regional products reaching customers outside the state.“The makhana, the Madhubani… are going all over the world from India,” Kumar said.On logistics, Kumar said rail and road would remain important for eastern and northeastern markets, while Amazon Air had been extended in the Northeast. The choice of air connectivity for Patna, he said, would depend on volumes, speed, reliability, sustainability and economics.On quick commerce, Kumar said Patna was “already viable” for Amazon Now and “we will get there (Patna) soon”. He said smaller micro-fulfilment centres closer to customers would be needed. Amazon Now has more than 750 such centres across over 60 cities.Kumar, who spent about eight years in Sonepur while growing up, said Bihar had significant untapped potential and praised improvements in roads and infrastructure. Better connectivity could help Bihar tap more e-commerce opportunities.
