Flipkart to grow 2GUD as separate online platform

Bengaluru, dhns: India’s largest ecommerce marketplace, Flipkart, on Wednesday announced the launch of a new ecommerce platform ‘2GUD’ to sell refurbished electronic goods.

This is the first such independent ecommerce marketplace created by Flipkart to cater to a value seeking customer, a top company official said.

“We will develop 2GUD as a separate ecommerce marketplace with different branding for sale of refurbished goods,” Anil Goteti, Vice President, Flipkart told DH. Goteti will be heading 2GUD along with Flipkart marketplace.

Initially, it will be a mobile-only platform and the desktop version will be launched later. The marketplace will offer refurbished smartphones, laptops, smart watches, tablets and electronic accessories. The company will add several other products under 30 categories that includes televisions, large and small appliances, and consumer durables, among others at a later stage.

Goteti also hinted that the company also intends to sell original products at a lower price point once the platform stabilises and gains popularity across the country. Flipkart will be coming out with an advertising and marketing campaign to popularise 2GUD as an independent ecommerce platform for refurbished goods. It will also make available the app on Google Playstore and Apple iOS soon, he said, adding that they will also participate in the upcoming festival sale campaign.

“We will leverage the existing infrastructure of Flipkart such as warehouses, and Ekart for door delivery of goods across all PIN codes currently serviced by Flipkart. Once we are ready with facilities like quality checks to refurbish other goods, we will launch them,” Goteti said.

Flipkart has tied up with refurbishing company F1 Info Solutions and Services to refurbish used smartphones, etc. Going forward, it plans to tie up with more such players for various other product categories across the country, he said.

Currently, each product is tested and certified for 47 quality checks and refurbished to make them fully functional.

Flipkart CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy said the company has removed the trust deficit that exists in the refurbished goods market and offering yet another avenue to customers to get value for their money.

Goteti said the refurbished goods market is fast growing in India, and is currently pegged at $2 billion. However, it is expected to be a $20 billion to $30 billion market in the next 5-6 years.

The platform will offer warranty for up to 12 months depending on the brand and there will also be warranty from the brand. If there is no brand warranty, the platform will offer the same, Goteti said.

"We will have lots of affordability concepts tagged to the purchase of these products. There will be EMI options, assured buy back, and even finance options to customers. We want to make anything and everything to make consumer affordable to buy these products with convenience," he added.