Guess who looks more like a global, octopus-like Amazon in India? (Hint: It isn’t Amazon)

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CAVEATS

Before Mukesh can break out the bubbly, however, there are still many hurdles ahead of him. To really win the new economy game, Reliance will need to exhibit a culture of cutting-edge innovation, like, say, a Tencent, which it is not yet known for. New economy businesses require entrepreneurs from new economy wombs to think, act, and breathe in the language and neural makeup of this new world, a world that old economy Reliance is far from embodying or engendering.

Then, there’s the synergy element — all parts of the whole company need to be firing on all cylinders, and effortlessly so, for the grand vision to work, which is not the easiest thing considering the size of the enterprise. Also, his chief competitors Amazon and Walmart (via Flipkart) have considerable experience and competitive advantages, which are crucial to new-era businesses. Amazon is a world leader in technology both on the consumer facing front and in the enterprise space. Walmart, meanwhile, is an expert on how to keep supply chains humming with efficiency.

Plus, Reliance has gotten to where it is now because of its vast pool of cash — its ability to use the endlessly profitable petroleum operations to raise debt for its newer forays such as telecom. How long will Reliance be able to continue doing thos? “Replicating success in the e-commerce world will take some sharp learning and a lot of spending,” Vidhya Shankar said, executive director at advisory firm Grant Thornton in Quartz. 

Now that, of course, is something Mukesh Ambani is not at all averse to doing. The question is what will happen when the golden goose stops laying its eggs? By then, Reliance’s new businesses would have to be solidly profitable rather than a fanciful bet on the future.

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