Ecom players prepare for festive record sales as India reopens

New Delhi: Amid last year’s pandemic, Indian shoppers helped ecommerce platforms achieve a total gross goods value (GMV) of $ 7.4 billion (about Rs.52,000 billion) during the holiday season (October to December) . This year, as retail stores reopen and Covid cases slow, Indians are expected to buy a whopping $ 9 billion (Rs.64,000 billion) in goods through online platforms.

Despite the offline opening at almost pre-Covid level and only in the first festive week – from October 3rd with flip carts “Big Billions Day” (BBD), Amazon’s Great Indian Festival and the online fashion e of Reliance Group Begins Strong Online Hard Sales Expected – Retailer Ajio to be Key Players – Ecommerce players are expected to reach $ 4.8 billion (Rs.33,600 billion) in revenue, according to latest data from the Bengaluru based market research firm RedSeer is an increase of 30 percent over the previous year.

In 2020, ecommerce platforms fetched nearly $ 3.7 billion (about Rs.25,900 billion) in GMV in the first week of festive sales.

Before the Christmas season, Amazon India significantly expanded its operating network. It has increased warehouse capacity by 40 percent with more than 60 fulfillment centers in 15 states and offers 43 million cubic feet to its sellers.

It now has 1,850 delivery stations owned and operated by both Amazon and delivery service partners to increase its direct reach, even in remote cities.

“Our continuous investment in the infrastructure of our fulfillment and delivery network will enable us to better serve our customers with the convenience they need and to deliver safely over the Christmas period with a seamless, fast and reliable experience,” said Akhil Saxena. VP, Customer Fulfillment Operations, APAC, MENA and LATAM, Amazon.

Flipkart, which is owned by Walmart, said it connects more than 5,000 offline branded retail stores from more than 300 cities on its platform. This includes small and large-format brand shops that offer products from the areas of fashion, large appliances, cell phones and consumer electronics.

“We pride ourselves on facilitating access to the Pan-Indian consumer market for over 5,000 branded retail stores. We look forward to expanding this program over the next few months to produce branded retail partner products that may be available to a much larger audience across India.” said Rajneesh Kumar, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Flipkart Group.

Ajio, the online fashion e-retailer of the Reliance Group, is also preparing for its “Big Bold Sale” until October 4th. The company offers a catalog with over 6 lakh styles from more than 2,500 brands.

According to RedSeer, growth this year will be mainly driven by accelerated online adoption, which has been seen as an impact from Covid.

“Tier 2+ cities will continue to drive growth as they account for 55-60 percent of the total buyer base this year, similar to or higher than 57 percent on the 2020 Holidays. On the other hand, offline retail and mobility are rebounding . “Nearly reaching pre-Covid levels, it will have an impact on festive online sales as customers can also choose to shop offline,” the report said.

While cell phones will continue to dominate due to new product launches, electronics is expected to see the second highest demand due to the wide choice, easy payment options like EMIs and Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) among others.

In addition, fashion is expected to steadily recover this Christmas season, with greater consumer outdoor mobility and a steady recovery in fashion and office wear.

“We believe the 2021 festive online sales will continue to be driven by the strong tailwind of greater consumer digital adoption, supported by increasingly positive macro and consumer sentiment after the second wave of Covid is over,” said Mrigank Gutgutia, Associate Partner at RedSeer.

Almost 80 percent of sellers agree that festive sales will play a key role in recovering from Covid losses, while 70 percent agree that the larger online players have been supportive and positive leading to the sales event.

Total online GMV is projected to hit $ 49-52 billion this year, up roughly 37 percent year-over-year, mainly driven by the consumer funnel’s strong expansion and high adoption of Covid online shopping in is attributable to all categories.