Flipkart, Amazon to beat slowdown blues, says report

E-tailers such as Amazon and Flipkart are set to witness a huge growth in festive sales this year, despite the slowdown crippling the economy.

The e-commerce firms are expected to sell goods worth more than $3.7 billion (about Rs 24,000 crore) during the upcoming sales from September 29 to October 4, which is an increase of more than 60.8%, a report released by consulting firm Redseer said on Friday. The e-tailers had clocked sales worth $2.3 billion in 2018.

Amazon and Flipkart are extending a host of offers and discounts during their Great Indian Festival and Big Billion Days sales. More than 75 million gross transactions are expected over the six-day period compared with 45 million last year, according to Redseer.

It also expects the number of unique shoppers to grow by about 60% year-on-year, to 32 million, with many of them from Tier II cities and towns. Improved vernacular interface of platforms and wider selection across categories, attractive deals and easier credit availability are cited as the major reasons behind this spurt in interest from small-town India.

While mobile phones will continue to top the sales — retailing to Rs 11,700 crore — other electronic items are expected to retail about Rs 6,200 crore, while fashion (apparel) is expected to clock sales worth Rs 3,600 crore.

Consumer electronics is also expected to drive significant growth this festive season, particularly from smaller cities, due to high consumer intent to shop for electronics.