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e-commerce

reduced the burden on the ticket book- the offline retailers. The offline retailers and feeling’ the products before buying
ers overall. Although retail sales were have approached the government to for the Indian consumers. In a twist of
available online since the year 2000 with intervene in their price war with the tale, MakeMyTrip has physical outlets in
Rediff shopping and even eBay, online online merchants. more than 40 cities in India and operates
shopping was, in effect, re-launched in The inherent attitude of ‘touching through 63 such outlets; so does Bharat-
India when Flipkart, a company founded Matrimony and now, Yatra.com plans to
by two Chandigarh based technocrats, open 100 new physical stores. Why? It
offered very high discounts on their India’s top two is to cater to the millions who have yet
website. Since then, a great number ecommerce to purchase online? Although there are
of other merchants like Amazon have over 200 million internet users in India,
jumped onto the online bandwagon. The marketplaces, Amazon only 32 million are the actual shoppers.
e-commerce sector in India is currently and Flipkart, have asked The Indian sceptical mind-set still yearns
growing at a furious pace of 34% since for that ‘physical touch’ of products like
last one decade. companies to offer the those for the baby or expensive items
The young internet-savvy popula- like jewellery or watches. Keeping this in
tion of India, is one of the biggest driving lowest possible price mind exactly, merchants like Caratlane.
forces of e-commerce in the country. The to help revive demand. com and firstcry.com have set up physi-
young populace is driving e-commerce cal shops for customers to try out their
sales up, and the new and improved Brands have expanded items.
mobile apps make it convenient for business this year by The innovative retail stores are pro-
shoppers to make purchases on the go. viding a mix. Many big players are boost-
Consumers in tier-2 and tier-3 cities, 60-100% over last ing their overall revenues by their digital
who may not have access to top brands, year’s first festive sale, e-commerce sales to their preexisting
fulfill their desires by going the online traditional retail systems. There is a rea-
approximately $3.8 billion in revenue “Unscrupulous business of e-commerce way. The user-friendly interfaces, multi- signalling a revival in son why Snapdeal and Croma are now
and in next three years by 2012 the num- companies was the main reason for ple online stores, trending fashion, easy demand and consumer partners or Amazon and Big Bazaar
ber went up by almost three times to $9.5 slowdown in the sales (of offline markets) and very secure online payment meth- are not just retailers. It is a partnership
billion. For next three years while pre- during Diwali as they are giving huge ods and discounts round the year make sentiment at least on of technology meeting logistic service
dictions estimated a growth of 33%, the discounts on various products. This has online shopping attractive. Naturally, the ecommerce platforms offerings. Shoppers Stop has revamped
industry managed to surpass even that, attracted customers coming to the markets. frenzy of online buying has severely hit their online platform and so is Reli -
to achieve $12.6 billion by 2015. The ana- “Recently, in the festival sale put up by ance to attract the online
lysts have made projections suggesting Amazon and Flipkart, both companies have consumers.
an overall market value of organized sold (goods worth) around Rs 19,000 crore With the digital age, there
retail in India to be $1 trillion by 2020. in just four days, which makes it clear that is definite a paradigm shift
However the Shakespearean “to be a large part of the business in the market is leaning more towards e-
or not to be that is the question”, these (with) online companies. commerce. The brick and
numbers now seem unlikely. Reason, the “There is a decline of almost 60 per cent in mortar retailers must comply
e-commerce continues to evolve. This the business of mobile sector only, 35 per cent in FMCG and consumer and adjust themselves to new
has started affecting India’s traditional durable, 35 per cent in electronics goods, 30 per cent in electrical strategies like the business
retail industry referred to as the brick- appliances, 25 per cent in garment, 20 per cent in footwear, 35 per cent mix-having retail presence
and-mortar retail. The retail sector is in gift items, 25 per cent in furnishing goods, 25 per cent in decorative and going online or merging
experiencing a great deal of churn as items, 15 per cent in building hardware, 30 per cent in kitchen with established online busi-
physical retailers take new and elabo- equipment, 30 per cent in computer and computer goods. nesses to survive.
rate measures to keep up with their “The data is based on sampling done from feedback of seven crore “It is not the strongest or
online competitors. First the retail stores traders associated with the Confederation of All India Traders across the most intelligent who will
felt heat from big malls and now the India. If the market goes on like this for another week, then on this survive, but those who can
e-commerce. Diwali festival, due to the e-commerce companies, there will be a drop best manage change.” The
Millennial generation moved to on- of about 50 to 60 per cent in the total business of the traders, which is statement coming from great
line shopping. India’s first brush with very worrying. scientist, Charles Darwin in
e-commerce was in the year 2002 when “If the government does not curb online sales and does not put money the 19th century for the the-
the government of India launched a web- in the market, then the business situation will be very bad.” ory of evolution, is perhaps
site for online railway ticket booking via most relevant to Indian retail
IRCTC. This was especially directed for SuShil Kumar Jain, industry in the 21st century.
the common man who then didn’t have Convener of the Delhi-NCR unit of Confederation of
to stand in long queues, waste time and All India Traders across India letters@tehelka.com

tehelka / 15 november 2019 24 www.tehelka.com tehelka / 15 november 2019 25 www.tehelka.com