From shilajit to skincare, Amazon eyes $80 billion e-commerce exports by 2030

In a move that is likely to enhance India's share in the e-commerce exports pie, Amazon Global Selling (AGS) is planning a six-fold jump in its e-commerce portfolio from India to $80 billion by 2030 from $13 billion at present. At the core of the plan is a wide array of products ranging from shilajit to toys which the company is planning to export to the global markets through e-commerce channels. 

“We have cumulatively done around $13 billion in exports so far and enabled around 1.5 lakh exporters through Amazon Global Selling,” says Srinidhi Kalvapudi, head – Amazon Global Selling India. “We are encouraged by the $13 billion mark, but at Amazon, we say it’s still day one—we’re only scratching the surface.”

India’s traditional export narrative has long leaned on IT and services, but Kalvapudi believes the country has strong roots in merchandising exports too—from cotton-based home textiles to ayurvedic personal care and D2C consumer innovations. “We’ve always had very strong merchandising strengths. What’s encouraging now is that our D2C ecosystem is innovating fast and finding traction globally.”

India’s e-commerce exports are heavily consumer-led. U.S. remains the top market, followed by the U.K. and the MENA region. Key growth categories include skincare, ayurveda, oral care, educational toys, and products like shilajit and multani mitti. “Shilajit has become quite big in the U.S. in the last two years, primarily led by Indian sellers,” he adds.

The focus is timely as the government too has sharpened its focus. Earlier this year, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal had said the ministry is working in a "very" targeted manner to take India’s overall exports to $2 trillion by 2030 by identifying areas of strength and addressing exporters’ challenges. As part of this vision, e-commerce exports were included for the first time as a separate category in the Foreign Trade Policy.

Despite the momentum in India’s cross-border digital commerce, the country’s e-commerce exports remain significantly smaller than global peers like China, South Korea, and Vietnam. While industry estimates peg India’s e-commerce exports at just $3–5 billion annually, China’s are reportedly around $350 billion.

Still, Kalvapudi is clear-eyed about the current gap with countries like China. “Catch up perhaps indicates that we are behind in some way. I’d rather say we’re carving out our own parallel path,” he says.

What holds India back? For one, a lack of awareness. “Many entrepreneurs still perceive exports to be capital-intensive and compliance-heavy,” he says. But Amazon’s efforts to lower the barrier—from onboarding to logistics and compliance support—are helping shift that perception. Sellers can now use self-serve tools like Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) for logistics, and access training via regional Export Connect programmes. The company has also signed an MoU with the Gujarat government to get closer to sellers in Jodhpur and other hubs.

Another shift: cross-border exports are no longer a big-city phenomenon. “Thirty-eight percent of our shortlisted sellers in the Propel programme this year were from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities,” Kalvapudi says. States like Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh are emerging as strong clusters for exports of cotton-based textiles, and more.

Some homegrown brands have already begun making a mark abroad—like Vahdam Teas, which was featured on Oprah’s show, Skillmatics, Sirona, and Minimalist. “We look at it in terms of customer recall, and the examples show that Indian brands are resonating globally,” he says.

While geopolitical tensions and global uncertainty persist, Kalvapudi remains optimistic. “This is a fundamentally sound business to be in, driven by product innovation and strong customer demand. The ecosystem is strengthening. And as that continues, we believe we’ll see a lot more success.”