Amazon moves to fuel startups for its platform

Amazon unveiled plans Tuesday to help startups launch and sell their products and services through the US online giant. The program called Amazon Launchpad offers assistance to these new firms to get up and running and get access to the Amazon network. The US online retailer and cloud storage giant announced it would help startups in areas such as brand development, marketing, inventory management and global expansion. "As the pace of innovation continues to increase within the startup community, we want to help customers discover these unique products and learn the inspiration behind them," said Amazon vice president Jim Adkins. "We also know from talking to startups that bringing a new product to market successfully can be just as challenging as building it. Amazon Launchpad gives customers access to a dedicated storefront featuring a variety of innovative new products from emerging brands." Amazon said is working with more than 25 venture capital firms, startup accelerators, and crowdfunding platforms to bring startups into the Amazon Launchpad program. Its announcement coincided with the rolling out of new products to be sold on Amazon's own sites and apps. The firm said it has already helped 200 products currently available in the Amazon Launchpad store from electronics to kitchen to beauty items.