eCommerce News - February 2022
Delhi Now the New Start-up Capital of India!
- In recent years, Indian startups have grown exponentially. 2021 took the trophy with a record 44 Indian start-ups achieving the unicorn status, taking India’s overall tally to 83.
- As per the Economic Survey 2021-22, there were 14000 new startups recognized by the Government. In comparison, 733 were reported in 2016-17.
- With that, India’s Global Innovation Index moved to 46 from 81. Besides this, in accordance with the state-wise statics Dehli overtook Bangaluru to be the new start-up capital of India.
An eCommerce Platform That Brings Queer Entrepreneurs Together
- BeUnic is an eCommerce platform that supports and promotes entrepreneurs from the LGBTQ+ community. It’s a unique platform to make them feel inclusive, non discriminated and earn their living.
- The marketplace is founded by 27-year-old Ashish, a queer man, and an HR professional with Google.
- Prior to this, apparently, entrepreneurs of the queer community did not feel whole-heartedly welcomed by marketplaces and used social media to reach potential customers.
D2C Brand Zouk Eyes Rs 100 cr Annual Revenue by FY23
- D2C vegan leather lifestyle brand Zouk is aiming to garner a Rs 100 crore annual revenue run rate by FY23. They plan on doing this by expanding their product range and strengthening international operations across the US and the Middle East.
- Zouk, founded by Disha Singh and Pradeep Krishnakumar, makes make laptop bags, tote handbags slings, and chain wallets using ‘vegan leather’.
- All their products are made by local artisans at the company premises in Mumbai.
H&M India Introduces Home Furnishing Brand H&M Home in Both Online, Offline Formats
- On February 2, 2022, Swedish multinational clothing company H&M announced its home furnishing brand H&M Home in India in both online and offline formats.
- H&M homes will now offer fashion-forward decor and accessories to suit every room and style.
- The digital store will be launched on their eCommerce website and on Myntra. This would be followed by an introduction to current offline stores
Myntra Beauty Launches Coveted French Natural Skincare Brand Caudalie
- eCommerce Platform, Myntra, has now launched Caudalie’, a global skincare brand from France.
- Their e-tail brand will host the entire range of Caudalie’s natural, and effective skincare solutions under its accessible luxury segment.
- Caudalie, was founded in 1995, and specializes in Vinotherapie and is known for its unique skincare products that harness extracts from grape and grapevine, and also for its Vinotherapie spas
This Rs 107 Cr turnover self-funded Indian brand now eyes an IPO
- MiniKlub – kids’ appeal wear, was founded by Anjana Pasi who is also the Director of her brand. The brand was self-funded by her and her husband Manish Pasi back in 2012.
- This was when she figured that the kid’s apparel sector would blow up in the near future. And since they were already manufacturing clothes for popular foreign companies; they wondered why should they why not create their own brand. Here’s their inspiring story
International: Amazon Marketplace is 25% of US eCommerce
- 25% of every dollar spent in the U.S. on shopping online goes to Amazon’s third-party marketplace called “Amazon Marketplace”.
- This means if Amazon Marketplace was an independent platform, it would have been the largest retailer in the states
Amazon’s Cumulative Shipment in India Touches USD 3 Billion
- Amazon has facilitated product shipment worth USD 3 billion from India in the last 6 years as per officials. The company further plans to turn that to USD 10 billion by 2025.
- The company has started onboarding exporters and several start-ups under the Amazon Global Selling Propel (AGSP) from 2021.
- This initiative aims to shape eCommerce companies to match international market standards and also support these businesses in scaling
Trader’s Body to Launch Updated Version of Bharat eMarket App
- Conference of All India Traders (CAIT) is aiming to launch an updated version of its eCommerce portal – Bharat eMarket in March 2022.
- This update would be after almost a year after beta testing the app. This decision was made to fight top eCommerce companies that planned on digitizing local shops and businesses as part of the new eCommerce rules.
- That will sell products across all categories and are expected to play rivals to Amazon and Flipkart
B2B Businesses Boom as eCommerce has a New Normal
- eCommerce has become the most preferred shopping mode in India, thanks to the pandemic. Industries such as logistics and eCommerce have become overnight successes.
- Following the growing B2C eCommerce sector, B2B businesses are catching up too.
- Predictions and statistics show the sector is to further grow in the coming years. As most B2B sales interactions are going to take place via digital channels
Industrial, Warehouse Leasing Demand at 22 Million sq ft in 2021: Colliers
- According to Colliers, warehousing and industrial facilities across India’s top cities saw an increase in demand of about 22 million sq ft. This was pushed due to robust demand and production growth via eCommerce players.
- The report states that high-quality warehousing space is driven by the 3PL sector which is closely followed by eCommerce companies.
Snapdeal Partners with GoKwik
- Snapdeal announced its partnership with eCommerce enablement company GoKwik, on February 8, 2022.
- In this partnership, Snapdeal will be using GoKwik’s AI model. That will help them gain customer insights to offer a better and improved customer shopping experience.
- GoKwik is a platform that helps solve problems faced by customers with regards to their buying experiences on eCommerce websites.
Meesho Satisfies Customers and Also Employees
- eCommerce player Meesho has announced that they will permanently allow their employees to work from home, office, or any location of thier choice.
- Meesho Co-founder said this would open up opportunities to global talent. And that the idea is to allow employees the flexibility to work.
- Besides this, the eCommerce marketplace also provided employees with other benefits and employee-friendly practices.
Xpressbees turns Unicorn with $300 Fresh Funding
- Xpressbees, an Indian logistics company startup, tripled its valuation to $1.2 billion in a new financing round.
- The total fresh funding came from Blackstone, TPG, and ChrysCapital a total of 300 million.
- This funding takes the company’s total all-time amount raised to $575.8 million.
Here’s How a Dark Store is Helping D2C Brands Up their Digital Game
- The eCommerce market in India is increasingly becoming competitive; brands need to ensure they are closer to customers and ensure that the right infrastructure is available.
- ZFW Dark Stores was founded to help with this demand. ZFW Dark Stores, is currently servicing more than 20,000 orders per month and aiming towards 50,000+. Read on to know how.
Flipkart Launches Sell Back Programme for Purchase of Smartphones
- Flipkart has launched a new programme in which customers can sell their used smartphones.
- The programme will initially begin with just selling smartphones and later will divert to other categories.
- The buy-back programme is already live in major cities of India and across 1,500 plus pin codes.
Opinion: "Bestseller" Tag on a Marketplace is as Good as Celebrity Endorsement
- eCommerce performance audience is driven by product ads be it on marketplaces or on platforms like Google or Facebook. . These ads are changing the way consumers buy.
- As per Jyothirmayi, CEO of HiveMinds in her opinion piece, said that eCommerce is at 7% which is even higher for developed countries. She further stated that the habit of browsing and buying is just forming in India and is bound to stick. increase in the future.
- Jyothirmayi went on to give a few golden rules for eCommerce business, one of the key ones is getting the “best-seller tag”.
How Technology is Transforming Indian eCommerce
- The diverse culture and languages of India pose a marked challenge to the retail industry. The sector makes up to 10% of the GDP.
- Luckily the pandemic sped up the process of ecommerce adoption. This helped both sellers and consumers move years ahead.
- Technology has been the backbone of this progress. Smartphone adoption along with affordable 4G connectivity (JIO) in tier 3 towns is just one of the many factors.
How Dukaan Pivoted to become a Competitor to Shopify in India
- Dukaan was launched as a mobile first app that set out to digitize mom-and-pop, kiranas in India.
- During the pandemic, they quickly adapted to serving online sellers too. Sellers with no software skills and expertise can set up their own store on the Dukaan mobile app.
- Although competitors like Shopify, Woocommerce are available, Dukaan is proving to be a simpler version of these ecommerce platforms. Most importantly, its mobile ready and hence accessible to all.
Govt Says No Ecommerce Portal Found Guilty of Predatory Pricing Yet
- The Government of India recently stated that the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has confirmed that there is no eCommerce company that is guilty of indulging in predatory pricing.
- This statement was made as clarification after a quote was made by the Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Som Parkash, that the CCI had received certain complaints of alleged predatory pricing by commerce portals.
- Predatory pricing is the illegal act of selling products lower than that of the competition in order to eliminate them.
Video Commerce Shoppers are Expected to Grow to Reach 216 Million by Year End : WATConsultFunding
- As per a report released by WATConsult, India has the highest number of per capita consumption of internet data. This consumption is heavily skewed towards video content.
- The rise of internet usage and video content consumption has given rise to video commerce. Currently, video commerce has around 146 million shoppers in India. That makes up for 49% of eCommerce users.
- These numbers are estimated to increase to 216 million users by the end of 2022.
Nepal Adopts India’s UPI System as a Payment Platform
- India’s neighboring country Nepal is the first foreign country to adopt India’s UPI System as a Payment Platform as per the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
- This paves a way towards transforming the country’s digital economy for the better.
- NPCI International Payments Ltd, the international arm joined with the Gateway Payments Service (GPS) and Manam Infotech will be the key parties ensuring that Nepal is provided with the services.
Udaan Shipped over 260 Million products across cities in 2021
- Udaan’s B2B eCommerce business platform, announced that they shipped over 260 million products of non essential goods in 2021. And also shipped over 20 lakh tonnes under the essentials category.
- This makes up over 50 million orders across 1000 towns of the country. Besides this, they onboarded over 5 lakh new retailers and kirana shop owners in 2021.
Users in Smaller Towns Now Comfortable Buying Online as We Cater to their Needs - Meesho Co-founder
- Even if meesho isn’t as big as its competitors, it is putting up a tough fight . Its rapid growth today is fueled by tier 2 and tier 3 cities.
- As per Data.AI, Meesho acquired success with breakthrough downloads and even record active monthly users.
- Sanjeev Barnwal, Co-founder and Chief Technical Officer of Meesho has mentioned that the customer base is currently value-conscious users.
- The app users live across 5000 towns and belong to low and middle income groups.
Indian Logistics Industry to Revolutionize with EVs
- It seems the future is all electric for Indian mobility and it’s no surprise that Electric vehicles (EVs) have picked up in the market.
- India is emerging as the global hub for electric two-wheelers. It is estimated that EVs will play a large role in the logistics sector in the coming years & decades.
- It’s an ideal strategy to decarbonize the eCommerce and logistic sector and most importantly cut costs.
India to Soon Become the 5th Largest Beauty Market: Nykaa Chairperson
- India is predicted to surpass some of the European markets to become the 5th largest in the world in the beauty and wellness segment, as per Nykaa founder Falguni Nayar.
- She also added that the fashion industry too is becoming organized. Currently the unorganized sector in fashion amounts to 80-85% of the industry.
Buy Now and Pay Later Market of India to Touch $40 Bn by 2025- Report
- India’s Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) offerings has seen an unexpected massive adoption rate. It is showing a 65% year on year growth.
- Some key players include Paytm, PhonePe , Zestmoney, ePayLater, Simpl, Lazypay,Flipkart and Amazon India. Here’s why BNPL is deemed to be a success.
