Flipkart to focus on value to tap festive season sales
It aims to make shopping convenient via vernacular and voice search capabilities
Flipkart, which kicks off its flagship Big Billion Day (BBD) sale on 16 October, is relying on technology, value-driven shopping, and expanding its assortments to cater to customers from smaller cities this year.
BBD, which will closely compete with Amazon’s Great Indian Festive Sale, ahead of Dussehra and Diwali, will be a litmus test for e-commerce firms who have said the 2020 edition will be their biggest ever, bringing 40-50 million consumers to shop online.
The festive sale will push the active online shopper base in India to 160 million from 135 million in 2019, according to RedSeer Consulting.
Thousands of Flipkart employees will work remotely for the five-day sale, creating virtual war rooms. The e-commerce firm, which has its two biggest data centres in Chennai and Hyderabad, has been testing its server strength and creating backups.
“As more consumers from diverse age groups and backgrounds come online to shop, we see a great focus on value this festive season," said Flipkart.
Flipkart is building this BBD edition on value-conscious customers, with the share of shoppers from tier II rising. It has been ramping up partnerships with value brands such as Bata and Max Fashion to offer more choice to consumers at lower price points.
More than half of the shoppers in this festive season will come from tier II cities and beyond, seeking value deals, and will be assisted by new shopping models, including video and WhatsApp-based shopping, a RedSeer report said. The Bengaluru-based firm is doubling down on the use of regional languages and voice search capabilities to drive convenience to this segment of buyers.
Flipkart also aims to source products from local markets to cater to BBD customers, through the Flipkart Quick service launched in July. Merchant kiranas in cities will also act as housing stations for the firm, as it looks to provide faster deliveries to customers in metros.
Electronics and smartphones will continue to dominate festive sales for both Amazon and Flipkart, while furniture and fashion will also see a rise in demand, according to analysts.
Flipkart will also leverage its private labels and has partnered with international brands to launch products.
The company will launch around 320 private brands across babycare, fast-moving consumer goods, sports and fitness, electronics and other categories, said Dev Iyer, vice-president, private brands.
tarush.b@livemint.com
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