Left-Right - Deepti Varma,VP, PxT, Amazon Stores India, Japan and Emerging Markets, kalki Koechlin, Actor and Author, Aruna Daryanani, Director, MX Player
Bengaluru, March 07, 2026: Amazon India has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Army Women’s Welfare Association (AWWA) to support entrepreneurship among women from military families. The announcement was made at Amazon’s annual ElevateHER event held ahead of International Women’s Day 2026.
Under the partnership, Amazon will onboard hundreds of women entrepreneurs registered with AWWA onto its e-commerce platform Amazon.in by 2029. The initiative aims to enable women from Army families—including spouses of serving personnel, spouses of veterans, Veer Naris and widows—to build and scale their businesses through digital commerce.
As part of the collaboration, participating entrepreneurs will receive structured onboarding and training on e-commerce and marketplace best practices. They will also gain access to Amazon’s fulfilment and logistics network and product visibility through the Amazon Saheli storefront, a programme designed to support women-led businesses.
Amazon Saheli provides women entrepreneurs with tools and services to help them establish their businesses online. The programme includes assistance with product photography, catalogue creation and access to analytics and business reports. Training sessions also cover aspects such as inventory management and delivering customer-focused experiences, enabling entrepreneurs to better manage and grow their online businesses.
According to Mrs. Sunita Dwivedi, President, AWWA, “We are excited to work with Amazon and help our members turn their entrepreneurial aspirations into sustainable, scalable businesses. Through this MoU, we aim to create new opportunities for women from Army families. We hope this collaboration will enable them to pursue entrepreneurship with greater confidence and connect with customers across the country.”
Deepti Varma, Vice President, PXT, Amazon Stores India, Japan and Emerging Markets, said, “We are honoured to partner with AWWA to support women from military families in pursuing entrepreneurship opportunities. At Amazon, we are committed to providing access to markets and the support needed to build sustainable businesses online. Through this collaboration, women entrepreneurs will be able to access Amazon.in along with structured onboarding and guidance to help them establish and grow their business on Amazon.in.”
The MoU was announced during ElevateHER 2026, Amazon’s annual event that celebrates and supports women entrepreneurs and professionals. The event brought together over 150 women professionals and leaders for discussions on career growth and emerging technologies.
Participants engaged in small-group mentoring sessions led by Amazon leaders covering areas such as artificial intelligence, fintech and other high-growth sectors. The event also featured a fireside chat on “Navigating Career Resilience” with actress and screenwriter Kalki Koechlin and Deepti Varma, as well as a workshop on financial independence led by fintech entrepreneur Aly Hajiani.
Through initiatives such as Amazon Saheli and partnerships with organisations like AWWA, Amazon India aims to expand market access and digital commerce opportunities for women entrepreneurs across the country.
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