bengaluru indias flipkart and americas amazon will adopt vastly divergent strategies in the new year after years of matching steps in the battle to dominate one of the worlds most dynamic ecommerce markets say analysts who also expect paytm mall which is backed by chinas alibaba to open a third front flipkart the countrys largest online retailer will woo more customers in smaller cities and towns with its own brand of consumer products amazon on the other hand will look to deepen the range of offerings for its premium customers as both companies look to entrench their positions and also open new markets for the first time we may see the market leaders following two different routes wrote rajiv sharma media and internet analyst at hsbc securities and capital markets india it may be no longer about gross merchandise value but more about basics like online shoppers repeat purchase and growth in new categories and fall in mobile he said in the report titled india internet on the way to india ecommerce 20 flipkart did not reply to email queries from eton the companys strategy for 2018 a representative for amazon india said we aim to be the everything store where customers can find any and all products that they are looking forfierce competition for top slot the two companies so far have competed fiercely for leadership in the indian online retail market estimated to be worth 1720 billion with deep discounts the most exclusive deals on smartphones and a wide array of fashion products particularly during the highprofile festive season sales this strategy say analysts will change as the industry grows at about 35 in the next five years and customers look to buy more than just phones and fashion items online redseer consulting estimates the mobile and fashion categories to account for about 68 of overall online sales in 2018 down from 72 in 2016 meanwhile more buyers are emerging from smaller cities and towns and for newer categories like groceries and for budget phones