Bangalore-based hyperlocal delivery startup Pickingo will soon shut shop. In a series of setbacks, that first set foot when the funding deal with SAIF capital fell through, followed closely by cash-strapped Zomato pulling the plug on a potential investment, Pickingo is shutting operations according to a report by Livemint.
Some very interesting facts are emerging from the stiff competition between online players and their brick-and- mortar counterparts. Just when it seemed that huge sales and big discounts offered by players like Amazon, Flipkart, and Snapdeal had wooed and won customers online, the offline sector is also going gaga and reporting huge revenues.
Not too long ago, the world had its eyes on China as one of the fastest growing countries in the globe. Now its economy has been slowing down, and the future doesn’t look quite as bright any more. One of the bright spots in China’s economy was its e-commerce sector, where players like Alibaba were breaking new ground with their humungous sales figures. A new report, however, takes the sheen off these numbers.
The mega sales have ended. The partying is also over. E-commerce majors such as Flipkart, Amazon and Snapdeal are now in for some sobering news.
Government of India has asked Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) to probe whether e-commerce majors have violated Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) rules by engaging in business-to-consumers (B2C) activity.
With several online customers facing such bad experiences in terms of pricing discrepancies, non-availability of desired products, or even receiving sub-standard or fake products, online marketers are now pulling up their socks to ensure customer satisfaction on one hand, and prevent fraud on the other. And one of the approaches taken by many ecommerce platforms, including biggies Flipkart and Amazon is introduction of the Mystery Shopper.
Flipkart’s been packaging and shipping an astonishing number of packages this festive season, and resources are understandably stretched. So they’re calling in reinforcements for their delivery teams. They’re hardly your typical delivery employees though.
The festive season is in full swing, and Indian e-commerce giants are battling it out for a share of India’s online shopping pie. The 3 biggest players – Flipkart, Amazon and Snapdeal – are running simultaneous sales from 13th to 17th October, and marketing and promotions have been fierce.
According to an Assocham-PricewaterhouseCoopers study, India is at the cusp of an e-commerce revolution. Accelerating internet access, staggering penetration of mobile phones and robust investment have driven the growth of this industry, and if current projections are anything to go by, India is on route to becoming the world’s fastest growing e-commerce market.
Amazon is moving to the streets and towns of India to convince businessmen to sell through its platform. And the Seattle-based company’s latest acquisition push for sellers has a distinctly Indian whiff to it – it’s trying to woo people with hot cups of chai.