ITV

Category: e-commerce

  • Pepperfry.com collaborates with Evok

    Pepperfry.com collaborates with Evok

    MUMBAI: Keeping up with the promise of offering the largest selection of furniture and home products, Pepperfry.com has now announced a tie-up with Hindware Home Retail Private Limited (HHRPL).

     

    Operating under the brand name Evok, HHRPL is a 100 percent subsidiary of HSIL. The collaboration will help Evok leverage Pepperfry’s large online customer base and expand its presence across the country. Evok retails its products through 19 outlets in key cities of India.

     

    Commenting on the association, Evok COO and business head Ajay Seth said, ‘Pepperfry will help us in reaching out to a larger customer base as in the last few years, E-commerce market has evolved in India and due to paucity of time, lot of customers are shopping from comforts of their homes Pepperfry will enable us in connecting with these customers.’

     

    In addition to the existing portfolio of over 11,000 furniture designs, Pepperfry will showcase the entire furniture range from Evok, which has been designed using high-quality materials and finishes to suit every type of style interior style and theme on the website. Through this partnership, it plans to expand its furniture range to offer differentiated furniture designs across the country and strengthen its leadership position.

     

    Talking about their focus on developing a strong merchant base in the online furniture segment, Pepperfry.com COO and founder Ashish Shah said, “Our alliance with Evok, one of the leading brands in the home interiors segment makes perfect sense as the products offered by the brand matches our ethos of providing a large range of high quality modern designs at affordable prices.”

     

    Currently, Pepperfry hosts a range of local and international brands and also offers a wide range of made-to-order solid wood furniture. “We have built a strong foundation in supply chain that has enabled us to distribute large quantities of furniture to hundreds of towns across the country. With this infrastructure we will continue to empanel more and more merchants and brands from across the country to fulfill our value proposition of providing our customers with an extensive choice of furniture designs at the click of a mouse,” he further added.

     

    Pepperfry.com will showcase entire furniture range from Evok including designs for living room, dining room & bedroom. It already offers a large portfolio of around 70+ furniture brands with leading names like Mudra, Nilkamal, Spacewood, @Home, Durian, Furniture Kraft and HomeTown selling on the website.

  • Junglee.com launches android smartphone app

    Junglee.com launches android smartphone app

    Mumbai: Junglee.com, India’s #1 product search and price comparison website has announced the availability of its mobile app for android smartphones. This launch makes it convenient for customers to check prices of over 3.1 crore products anywhere through the easy to use app.  Customers can download the free app by simply searching for Junglee in Google Play Store or by giving a missed call to 1800 108 8080.

     

    The app has multiple features to help customers search and get to the right product. These include an auto-suggest feature, filters to help refine results by brand, price, item condition, discount, average customer review and more attributes. In a market first, the app enables shoppers to search across  online and local sellers  together as well as compare prices across new and used products, all in one place.  In addition to checking prices, the app allows shoppers access to reviews for millions of products that are listed on Junglee.com .Shoppers can check prices  and read product reviews anywhere , at home , office and while shopping at retail stores. The seller ratings help customers evaluate sellers and choose the right one and  shoppers  can buy on the seller site or directly call sellers, from the app .

     

    “We recognize that shoppers value their time and money. We are excited to bring this app to our customers.  So whether you are in a mall or at office or work, customers can now check prices and shop smart using the app. Being a lightweight app, it downloads fast from the app store, saving precious device storage space and data download charges for customers. Its simple user interface makes it easier and less time-consuming to search or browse products”, said Junglee.com’s General Manager Mahendra Nerurkar.

  • Snapdeal enters into Hospitality segment; launches ‘Hotel and Catering supplies’ Category

    Snapdeal enters into Hospitality segment; launches ‘Hotel and Catering supplies’ Category

    MUMBAI: India’s largest online market place, Snapdeal.com announces its entry into the hospitality segment by launching the category of ‘Hotel and Catering supplies’. Snapdeal currently has close to 500 diverse categories listed on its website, such as- Furniture and Hardware, Mobiles and Tablets, Fashion and Lifestyle and Automotive to name a few. 

     

    This latest initiative by the company is an endeavor towards assisting upcoming restaurateurs and individuals and groups who are handling (current or in future) catering businesses. Consumers can shop for an assortment of products including Baking & Pizza Supplies, Bar Accessories, Chaffing Dishes, heavy gauge cutlery glassware, professional knives among many others. The products listed, also cater to the needs of households who are looking to use chef recommended cookware and utensils. The category includes products that are used in a restaurant kitchen, right from preparation to serving and buffet display.

     

    “This launch will further strengthen Snapdeal’s leadership as a marketplace and a shopping destination for all kind of products across categories which fulfil customers’ both home and business requirements. They can now shop for the widest range of kitchenware, utensils, cutlery and glassware at the comfort and convenience of their homes. In future we also plan to integrate a whole range of hotel linen (Mattresses, Pillows, Bed Linen & Bath Linen) into the category and thereby meet all the needs of a hotel/ restaurant”, said Tony Navin Senior Vice President – Electronics & Home at Snapdeal.com.

     

    For further information, please click on http://www.snapdeal.com/products/home-kitchen-catering-equipment

  • Private labels coming soon on Jabong

    Private labels coming soon on Jabong

    MUMBAI: As the e-commerce wars continue, online fashion retailer Jabong.com is all ready to jump in. According to PTI report, the company is planning to launch private label brands in the next 4-5 months.

     

    Talking to PTI, Jabong.com’s founder and CEO Arun Chandra Mohan said,  “We are setting up a full-fledged design team in London because we also want to create our own brands that provide good, fast, western fashion to the Indian consumers. We are in the final stages of setting up a top end design studio in London. It will be a team of the best fashion companies in the world that are going to be focusing only on creating the design. There is an immense opportunity to develop our own brands.”

     

    Jabong.com sells over 1,500 brands like Adidas, Puma, Levi’s, Converse, Proline, Nike among others. It also has apparels from leading fashion designers.

     

    Mohan added, “About 55-60 per cent of the company’s revenue comes from tier II and III cities. There are not enough malls in the smaller cities, which makes it conducive for people to shop online. We are growing at 10-15 per cent month on month. We are doing sales of about $30 million a month.”

     

    Commenting on the increasing e-commerce market in India, Mohan said that India is at an inflection point, where China was nearly three-four years ago.

     

    Jabong has also invested heavily on its mobile app because nearly 50 per cent of people are accessing internet through their mobile phones and that brings about 30 per cent revenue to the company.

  • OLX and Flipkart ink unique marketing tie-up

    OLX and Flipkart ink unique marketing tie-up

    MUMBAI: With more and more people accessing the internet through smartphones and tablets, the internet user base has grown to be around 243 million.  

     

    This has led to an exciting and booming e-commerce sector in the country. Last week, Flipkart announced that it had raised fresh capital of $1 billion; soon afterwards Amazon too announced that it will invest another $2 billion in India.

     

    And keeping the momentum going, OLX.in and Flipkart have tied-up for a unique marketing campaign that will leverage each other’s strengths to offer combined benefits of their platforms to the fast growing internet user base.

     

    OLX is marketplace for used goods, and Flipkart is a destination for online shopping, making this alliance between the two online brands an unprecedented one. The joint initiative by the two e-commerce leaders has been launched to further increase the awareness levels and accelerate the adoption of their online platforms for buying and selling. The campaign will run for one month, and will include several verticals within the electronics categories.

     

    OLX CEO Amarjit Batra said, “The idea for this tie-up was conceived keeping in mind the strong and independent position of OLX and Flipkart in their respective space. The rationale for the number one online classifieds platform and the leading e-commerce platform coming together for a marketing campaign is a seamless one. This tie-up will enhance consumer experience on OLX and Flipkart by giving users a more holistic online shopping experience in which they can sell their used goods on OLX before buying new products on Flipkart.”

     

    Flipkart sr VP marketing Ravi Vora added, “At Flipkart, our constant endeavor has been to make online shopping convenient and attractive to the masses in the country. With this partnership with OLX, we will be able to provide an end-to-end solution to customers especially in the electronics categories where selling old products is an integral part of the buying process.”

  • FirstCry.com to expand offline footprint

    FirstCry.com to expand offline footprint

    MUMBAI: The last couple of months have been an exciting one for the blooming e-commerce sector. As more and more investors fund the e-commerce sites, the sector’s purple patch is here to stay for a long time.

     

    However, the niche e-commerce sector, FirstCry.com, which was launched in 2010 to solve Indian parents’ problem of not having access to the best brands and products for their kids, is planning to take the offline route as well.

     

    The company feels that e-commerce’s future is looking promising in the country as more and more people come online and continues to be a big focus for us. “But what we see as a larger vision is to build an ecosystem of solutions for parents. Since, parents exhibit hybrid behaviour of shopping online and offline, we decided right at our inception that it was important to have offline stores as well. Today with a footprint in over 20 states with more than 70 stores, we are in a great position to offer the right variety of brands and products to parents,” says Firstcry.com founder and CEO Supam Maheshwari.

     

    With more than 95 per cent sales happening offline, there is still a large part of baby products market to be tapped, it has a vision of reaching 400 stores offline by December 2017. Currently, FirstCry stores have their presence in many Tier I, II and III cities in 45 cities.

     

    However, by entering into the untapped markets, where offline presence of baby products is low, it is highly optimistic about the company’s growth.

     

    On the marketing front, one of the key aspects of its strategy is to keep online and offline integrated. A parent who shops with FirstCry.com should be able to get the same experience online and offline. “We have a strong e-mailing program through which we are able to send personalised mailers making parents aware of store openings, promotions etc. In addition, we have introduced a highly innovative concept of a 32 inch digital Kiosk installed in each store – since a store is limited by physical space, we have used the Kiosk to allow parents to browse the large online variety and order what they like and the order will be delivered at the store. We also have a FirstCry Box program wherein we reach over 60,000 new parents each month with a complimentary gift box. Through this box, we make new parents aware of stores in their area and also offer a gift coupon which can be redeemed online or offline. Through a lot of such initiatives, we are able to ensure that we scale up our marketing plans with the highest ROI metrics,” says Maheshwari.

     

    Franchisee investment of about Rs 3,000 per square feet is required for setting up a store, which ranges anywhere from 1000 square feet to 2000 square feet. The stores act as experience centers, successfully tackling the touch-and-feel challenges faced in purchasing online.

     

    Overall, Firstcry keeps its model robust and scalable by controlling the franchisee’s investments, giving high return on investment and faster payback that has been instrumental in a break-even since inception. Firstcry.com along with its stakeholders looks forward to growing in terms of business and loyalty both.

  • Amazon to invest additional $2 billion in India

    Amazon to invest additional $2 billion in India

    MUMBAI: Amazon is looking at India as a potential market. The e-commerce platform which launched its maiden TVC to woo Indian consumers during this edition of Indian Premier League, has now decided to invest an additional $2 billion to support its rapid growth and to enhance customer and seller experience in India.

     

    According to Amazon, since its launch just over a year ago, its marketplace (www.amazon.in) has grown to be India’s largest store with over 17 million products from a continually growing base of thousands of small and medium-sized businesses, serving millions of customers across India and delighting customers with its guaranteed next-day delivery service. 

     

    “After our first year in business, the response from customers and small and medium-sized businesses in India has far surpassed our expectations,” said Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos. 

     

    He added, “We see huge potential in the Indian economy and for the growth of e-commerce in India. With this additional investment of US $2 billion, our team can continue to think big, innovate, and raise the bar for customers in India. At current scale and growth rates, India is on track to be our fastest country ever to a billion dollars in gross sales. A big ‘thank you’ to our customers in India – we’ve never seen anything like this.”

     

    On 29 July, Flipkart had announced that it was raising $1 billion which will be used to make long-term strategic investments in India, especially in mobile technology.

  • Flipkart raises $1 billion; to focus on mobile technology

    Flipkart raises $1 billion; to focus on mobile technology

    MUMBAI: Flipkart has raised $1 billion in one of the largest funding rounds for any e-commerce company, globally.

     

    The round led by existing investors, Tiger Global Management and Naspers, saw Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, GIC, as the new investor along with existing investors Accel Partners, DST Global, ICONIQ Capital, Morgan Stanley Investment Management and Sofina also participating in the latest financing round.

     

    The funds will be used to make long-term strategic investments in India, especially in mobile technology.

     

    “We believe internet will improve the quality of life for millions of Indians, and e- commerce is going to play a huge role in this change. The focus at Flipkart is to continue to make shopping online simpler and more accessible through the use of technology,” said founders Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal.

     

    They added, “We have close to 22 million registered users today. We handle five million shipments a month. These numbers were unheard of a few years back and we are excited about the scale we have managed to achieve. But what is even more exciting is the huge opportunity that we still see before us.”

     

    India has 243 million internet users – and this number continues to grow very fast. By 2020, India will have more than half a billion mobile internet users. The platform will now focus on mobile and technology to take advantage of the massive opportunity.

     

    The new funding will enable it to step up its investments for innovations in products and technologies, setting it up to become the mobile e-commerce company of the future. It will help the e-retailer further accelerate momentum and build its presence to become a technology powerhouse.

     

    Over the past few years, Flipkart has led the supply-chain innovation in India. It has focused on making the online shopping experience as seamless as possible: being the first to launch 30 day replacement policy and the first player to run 24×7 customer support at scale in India, In-a-Day guarantee in 50 cities and the subscription service ‘Flipkart First’.

     

    Flipkart, which recently acquired Myntra, plans to continue investing in training sellers for the marketplace, providing all small  and  medium  entrepreneurs,  manufacturers  and  artisans  a  national  platform  to connect with millions of customers.

  • Do celebs really push the online gamut?

    Do celebs really push the online gamut?

    MUMBAI: Everyone is talking about it. Everyone is on it as well. Online retailers have caught everyone’s fancy and if stats are to be believed then they are here to stay.

     

    The e-commerce industry has been growing at a rapid pace; 2013 saw the industry grow over 65 per cent which is currently estimated to be at $3.2 billion. As new competitors entered the space to encourage the shopaholic in all of us to click on the ‘buy now’ button and get parcel at the place of convenience, the competition has only grown manifold.

     

    To woo the ever-confused shopper who has too many options to choose from, thanks to new players entering the lucrative e-commerce market, the online retailers have to lure them with various offerings. Be it delivery in one day or exclusive brands on board, they have done it all to make sure customers come to them, time and again.

     

    Discounts are offered every now and then, and on special occasions like anniversary through various contests, customers are awarded shopping points and gifts. For instance, eBay India launched a Way Too Fab (WTF) campaign for its ninth birthday bash. As part of the celebration, it created a special page www.ebay.in/waytoofab that allowed any user who purchased products which valued more than Rs 500 on 12, 13 and 14 March 2014, to spin the Wheel of Magic which offered consumers an assured gift ranging from special coupons to mobile phones and tablets to name a few.   

     

    However, the latest mantra has been to launch eye-catching TVCs. Amazon India launched its first TVC during the most-sellable property on Indian television – Indian Premiere League (IPL). Having said that, who can forget the ads of Flipkart? The ads featuring children role-playing as adults went viral and soon many others followed. After a lull period, the war on the television screen has begun again as the new entrants want to leave their mark on people’s mind.

     

    Like Victoria Secret would be just another brand without its angels, similarly, each e-commerce platform is trying to be different than the other.  And for this, these portals have decided to attach popular faces to the brand. The hottest fad currently is popular Bollywood faces associating themselves with various e-retailers.

     

    Ranveer Singh, Lisa Haydon, Neha Dupia, Farhan Akhtar, Purab Kohli are just a few names associated with lifestyle e-retailers. When asked how does it help the platform, Myntra’s chief marketing officer Vikas Ahuja says, “By associating with celebrities, Myntra is making an effort to not just provide fashionable apparel and accessories but also be a thought leader in the latest style trends that are driving the fashion industry. Our association with celebrities such as Ranveer Singh for Roadster and Lisa Haydon for the Myntra brand has strengthened our focus on fashion, providing fans and customers an enthralling experience that goes beyond just shopping on our site.”

     

    LimeRoad, which caters to women’s sensibilities only, believes that though it has differentiated itself from other e-commerce players by moving away from a discount led offering, it did bring in Neha Dhupia on its management team. The reason behind it was that the team felt that her style could inspire a lot of women who shop on the site and those who make scrapbooks to express their style on LimeRoad. “Celebrities who reflect the brand’s promise help you get the right people to the site. They also bring in a lot of freshness and relevance to the context,” says CEO Suchi Mukherjee and adds, “Neha Dhupia is not only a pretty face but she epitomises the hard work, grit and dedication needed to make it big in life.”

     

    Others like YepMe, Lenskart etc too have celebs endorsing them. The rationale behind it is that most of them believe that celebrity associations help to create awareness, provide credibility and stature to the brand and rub-off of the celebrity’s personality and appeal onto the brand which strengthens the brand positioning / attributes further.

     

    Online apart, many companies have shopping on television ventures as well. However, these 24*7 channels which cater to mostly housewives don’t have celebs promoting them.   “Celebrity endorsement is beneficial for instant recall of the brand. When customers watch their favourite stars endorsing the brand or promoting a clothesline it does garner some visibility and helps draw eyeballs. But in the long run it’s all about the products and propositions that any brand has to offer,” believes HomeShop18 CMO Vikrant Khanna.

     

    The channel through its offerings, customer relationship management, value proposition, three-screen presence on TV-Web-Mobile and technology, wants to stand apart from the competition.

     

    HomeShop18 recently announced its TVC around the mantra “Shopping Makes Me Happy,” which had (talking) cats connecting with consumers to establish an emotional connect appealing to their desire for shopping. Similarly, Star CJ Alive, which parted ways with Star Network, introduced new mascot ‘Shoppie’ which works at bridging the gap between the current name and until the new name is finalised.

     

    TV has the highest media reach so irrespective of the industry, it’s still one of the most effective advertising medium. However, with changing times most of these brands have a 360 degree approach. New mediums like digital and social media have become an essential part of business today.

     

    Companies are taking extra efforts in the digital space to supplement the tools social media offers. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube channel, Instagram etc. are deployed to engage with peers and reach out to existing and potential customers across the digital platform.

     

    One of the best examples of luring youngsters today who are perpetually online is Myntra’s latest campaign -‘Live for Likes.’ The platform so far has also conducted other campaigns, both online and offline like the survey of India’s Most Fashionable Politician, Indian Fashion League, the Online Treasure Hunt, Online shopping fest, celebrity engagement through Fashion Icon of the Month among others. All this to encourage shoppers to be a part of its brand story.

     

    Online analysts believe that whatever be the case – online dominance or celeb in hand – a brand needs to be very clear of what it wants to accomplish. “There is a string of young actors who are willing to come on board. However, partnering with a right celeb is also very important. He/she should be able to generate interest among visitors on the site which should invert into sales to be successful,” says an analyst.

     

    A brand expert adds that these celebrities come at a certain price, so have to be used wisely. 

     

    Celebs might help generate initial traffic, but loyalty is dependent on product offerings, propositions, value, after-sales service, ease of use of the portal, hassle free delivery and return policies and lastly an overall virtual shopping experience. “If these important things are in place, shoppers will return to explore more, irrespective of the portal being endorsed by a celebrity or not,” concludes the expert.

  • Myntra signs Kangana Ranaut as Brand Ambassador and Face of DressBerry

    Myntra signs Kangana Ranaut as Brand Ambassador and Face of DressBerry

    MUMBAI: Myntra.com, India’s largest fashion e-tailer, has brought on-board Bollywood’s latest “Queen”, Kangana Ranaut, as its brand ambassador and the face for its fast fashion in-house brand DressBerry. With her recent mega hits like Queen, Revolver Rani and her previously unforgettable role in Madhur Bhandarkar’s ‘Fashion’, Myntra saw Kangana as an ideal choice for endorsing its bold and stylish range of apparel and accessories.

     

    As the brand ambassador, Kangana Ranaut will be featured in some of the promotional initiatives by Myntra.com, helping build a strong connect between the brand and its fans across the country. To begin with, the two-time Filmfare award winner will be the face of a young, confident and fashionable brand ‘DressBerry’, dedicated to young women. Myntra launched DressBerry in 2013, and within a span of 15 months, it has gained commendable popularity, making it one of the largest selling women’s western wear brands on Myntra.com.

     

    Expressing her excitement on the association with Myntra.com and Dressberry, the renowned actress, Kangana Ranaut said, “I am excited to be the brand ambassador for Myntra.com and happy to be the face of DressBerry, Myntra’s fast fashion women’s wear brand. When I came across DressBerry, I took an instant liking to it. Besides the apparel, it is the attitude of ‘Fun, Flirty and Feminine’ reflected by the brand that appeals to me.” 

     

    She further added, “Myntra provides shoppers the opportunity to access everything that a fashion fanatic can dream of, at affordable prices. Brands like Myntra.com are also providing access to youth in smaller towns to shop for their favourite brands as they are equally aspirational and want to look good just like their counterparts in larger cities.”

     

    Speaking on the celebrity association, Myntra CMO Vikas Ahuja said, “Myntra is a youth fashion brand, presenting the latest trends for men and women who are bold and stylish in the way they carry themselves. Just like Kangana Ranaut. I believe this partnership will strengthen Myntra’s position as India’s preferred online fashion destination and will mark a new step in DressBerry’s evolution.”

     

    DressBerry hosts a wide and diverse range of collection for young women across tops, dresses, jackets, bottoms, jumpsuits, nightwear and accessories, starting at just Rs 249 up to Rs 1999.

     

    Myntra.com ventured into private brands in December 2012 and has since developed a strong portfolio of eight private brands including Roadster, HRX by Hrithik Roshan, Sher Singh, Anouk, Kook N Keech and Mast & Harbour among others.

     

    Myntra.com also recently collaborated with the popular Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh for its in-house brand – ‘Roadster’ and Lisa Haydon as its brand ambassador while the ravishing Chitrangda Singh and the charming Abhay Deol, were voted as the Fashion Icon of the Month for May & June, 2014.