When Zomato.com was launched in July 2008 by two young IIT-ians, Deepender Goyal and Pankaj Chaddah, the  idea was to have your favourite food virtually before having it literally. Today, it is one of the largest food portals of the country.
Surprised? Don’t be. India’s e-commerce industry is experiencing a huge spurt in growth, courtesy e-retailing and sectors like online travel, daily deals, jobs and matrimony. Though the growth in all these sectors has been good, there is a lot of potential in e-retailing which is now being tapped. Thanks to a net savvy young generation, technology advancement and adoption and other favourable factors has made India a dream destination for e-retailers.
“The so-called second wave of e-commerce in India is definitely driven by the youth. They have led Internet adoption —- almost 70 per cent of the sales at our portal are contributed by people below 35. The youth in India have played two vital roles in this drive. First, they have transacted themselves and second, they have been great influencers in spreading the word about Internet retail,” says Arindam Bose, managing director of Timtara.com.
According to JewelsNext.com’s CEO Gaurav Issar, e-retailing is becoming more competitive with many players expanding into new and niche category verticals. For instance, he reveals that “jewellery e-commerce has grown from `43cr in 2005 to `3,700cr which is 8 per cent of the total e-commerce market of `46,250cr in India. This new year is all about getting to build engagement with 10 million transaction-generating users and positioning the brand with the rest along with building supply chains and payment mechanisms for customers not transacting online.”
Also, the fulfilment of digital orders is not a logistical nightmare anymore, and the alternative (standing in line) is a royal pain. Adds Manmohan Agarwal, CEO, BigShoeBazaar and spokesperson for Yebhi.com, “The market is all set for accelerating growth rates as the whole ecosystem grows, payment mechanism bottlenecks are reduced, and consumer awareness increases. I expect to see a slew of additional horizontal and vertical retailers selling everything from mobile phones to pet food over the next couple of years. These players would be introducing innovative models around delivery, or niche product sales, or be providers of enabling services.”
Some emerging trends in this space, according to Ankur Dinesh, founder of Wirefoot India, are, “web exclusive stores focused on offering high-end luxury products at discounted prices; differentiated product and service offerings; the proactive use of the social media to reach consumers; an increase in mobile/smartphone commerce; a shift in product categories to lifestyle and new categories such as kids, stationary, grocery and school supplies”.
Says Dinesh, “India’s online retail market is witnessing increasing action amongst online retailers as well as consumers. About 40 per cent of India’s top 25 online retailers offer products through the online medium only.”
While online shopping in India is still at an emerging stage, India’s massive population offers tremendous potential to online retailers. “Compared to other countries, the Indian retail experience is generally less stimulating. For this reason, I strongly believe that bringing the retailing experience to households via e-retailing will continue to hit the hot spots,” sums up Tushar Ahluwalia, co-founder, HeavenandHome.com.