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Tag: Jabong

  • NBA India to unveil slew of initiatives to popularise basketball

    NBA India to unveil slew of initiatives to popularise basketball

    MUMBAI: The arena for non-cricketing sports, which saw an expansion last year, is seeing a similar thrust this year too. One of the properties – National Basketball Association (NBA) recently launched a new look to the NBAStore.in along with Jabong. It is the league’s official online store in India that will include new team and player shops, a new spring collection of NBA merchandise, and a large selection of NBA player jerseys to fans in India.

     

    Another of the sports properties – the NBA JAM visited 16 Indian cities last year, which according to NBA India managing director Yannick Colaco drew a good response from over 3,000 teams that participated. At one point, entries had to be cut off as the additional teams could not be accommodated. The winning boys and girls teams from each of these cities went to the final play offs that was held in Pune. Industry sources peg that close to Rs 12 – 13 crore was spent on this initiative at the grassroots level.

     

    “The focus and primary objectives remain the same for us this year. It is to grow the game of basketball and continue to grow our fan base. We achieve these goals of ours through multiple platforms – from our grassroots programs like NBA Jam and the Reliance Foundation (RF) Jr NBA program to providing live and packaged content across media, to making available a wide range of merchandise through our online store; NBAstore.in,” says Colaco.

     

    The Junior NBA programme this year was held in eight cities and reached out to a million kids in the country. 

     

    Colaco goes on to add that NBA India will continue to work closely with its partners in India including Sony, Reliance Foundation, Jabong, Coca Cola, Adidas and Spalding.

     

    Spelling out plans for NBA this year, Colaco says that it will continue to grow the footprint of its grassroots programs to bring NBA experiences to even more fans. “We are also focused on more localised and customised content for our fans in India – on television and digital. We are planning a lot of innovative stuff around content and recently brought on board Mairu Gupta – who specialises in the digital and social media field – to give us added impetus in the space,” informs Colaco.

     

    When quizzed on why he is bullish on the social media domain, Colaco explains, “Social media is important to us as our target audience is primarily under the age of 25. This is the medium for the present and the future for our TA and is consequently a crucial component of our growth plans. In the next three to four months, we plan to launch quite a few exciting initiatives in this space.”

     

    The newly renewed site showcases new collections with more than 350 on and off court products and features a collection of player jerseys offered to fans in India. Jerseys recently added include those of Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James, Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, San Antonio Spurs forward/center Tim Duncan and Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard. 

     

    Meanwhile, NBA and MSM had first announced a partnership during the 2010-11 NBA season. This was followed by a multiplayer three year deal thereafter. The contract ends during the latter half of the year and will be up for renewal.

     

  • E-commerce, the Santa Claus this Diwali

    E-commerce, the Santa Claus this Diwali

    With the festival of lights knocking at the door and gifting at its peak, the-commerce portals are raining flash sales, lucky draws, special portfolios and exclusive product launches. The season which kicked off the with the Big Billion Day by Flipkart to the week- long Diwali Dhamaka Sale from Amazon, the online buzz is getting louder each day.

    The portals, flushed with money from recent fund-raising efforts, are lining up steep discounts, exclusive merchandise, cash-back schemes, and other promotional offers for this year’s festive season, giving them an opportunity to sell more, gain market share and increase their valuations.

    According to Team Pumpkin co-founder Swati Nathani, the period of October till January is considered great for retail sales, starting with festive buying for Pujo and Diwali, to winter shopping in November, party shopping in December and then End of Season Sale in January. “The season sees an approximate 200-300 per cent increase from the average e-commerce sales. Obviously, post Diwali sales will not match to the level of Diwali, but on an average they are 20-30 per cent higher than average period sales,” said Nathani.

     

    Amazon India

    For the festive season, the e-commerce giant is offering discounts with minimum 16 per cent and maximum of up to 56 per cent discounts on products like laptops, mobiles, household items and home appliances. The e-retailer is giving up to 70 per cent discounts on home appliances, clothing & accessories, gifts, gadgets and jewellery along with an additional cash back offer on purchases made by Citibank cards.

    Talking about the Diwali, the offers and discounts, Amazon India country manager & VP Amit Agarwal said that the customers can look forward to Amazon.in as their one-stop Diwali shopping destination and that Amazon is offering its Indian customers great savings on thousands of products every hour through its discounts and offers.

    On 21 September,  Amazon.in kicked-off the 30 day online Shopping Dhamaka ahead of the peak festival season offering customers thousands of exciting new deals & offers on the hottest products; new store launches; first access to unique selections & premium brands,  exciting contests, etc.

    As part of the Online Shopping Dhamaka, Amazon.in hosted two major events including ‘Mission to Mars’ weekend between 4-6 October dedicated to the success of India’s Mangalyaan mission and the Diwali Dhamaka Week between 10-16 October.

    “We are humbled by the tremendous response from customers to the Online Shopping Dhamaka and all events hosted as part of this.  The response from customers on the first day of the Diwali Dhamaka Week went beyond our wildest expectations as we surpassed our biggest day. Traffic on that day was 200 per cent more than that on our previous biggest day. We are seeing a massive interest from all over the country including tier 2 markets like Pune, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Surat, Vizag, Coimbatore, Patna, Bhopal, Nagpur, Chandigarh, Lucknow,” said an Amazon spokesperson.

    “Our seller clubs that have Rs 1 million+ & Rs 1 crore+ weekly sales increased by 44 per cent & 26 per cent respectively during the Diwali Dhamaka Week and sellers received orders from 868 non-metro cities,” he added.

    Electronics and Kitchen product categories grew by nearly six times during the Diwali Dhamaka week. In addition, we have received an overwhelming response from customers to all the exclusive launches that have taken place on Amazon.in during this period.

    “We have sold over 130,000 Micromax Canvas Android One smartphones, over 100,000 Coke Zero cans within two weeks of its launch, the Blackberry Passport has gone out-of-stock and we have sold hundreds of audio products of House of Marley,” the spokesperson informed.

    They also launched special festive design packaging and introduced gift boxes and gift wrapping paper in colours that match with the artwork on the gift boxes for Diwali.

     

    Flipkart-Myntra

    After offering crazy massive discounts on the Big Billion Day, raising Rs 600 crore as well as sending an apology letter to all its customers, Flipkart seems to have toned it down a bit.

    However, the industry that is currently surviving on discounts, the home-grown e-tailer is giving offers on select products. The site is hosting an electronic mela, giving massive discounts on televisions, camera, Smartphones, home appliances and others. The portal is offering 45-50 percent on home appliances like mixer grinders and induction cook-tops.

    The e-retailer is also holding an App lucky draw, where the lucky ones can win 3 days/2 nights holiday packages along with an additional cash back offer on purchases made by an SBI card.

    The e-commerce portal recently acquired the fashion portal Myntra as well as raised funds worth $1 billion.

    “Our aim is to help our sellers provide the best possible shopping options to our customers such that both sellers and customers benefit,” said a Flipkart spokesperson, talking about the Diwali sales.

    While the Bengaluru based portal is being cautious, its acquisition Myntra is giving discounts like 30 per cent off on no minimum value, up to 60 per cent off on festive collection and launching new private brands, Indian as well as international etc. Myntra has launched an exciting Diwali campaign ‘Myntra Cracker of a Sale’ from 7 -25 October.

    Myntra chief operating officer Ganesh Subramanian said, “Diwali is a period of festivity and cheer, where all of us buy new clothes, and want to ‘Look Good.’ The ‘Myntra Cracker of a Sale’ boasts of exciting brand offers from over 500 marquee brands and will also include exclusive collections from leading brands and designers which will be available only on Myntra.com.”

    “At Myntra, we are not restricting celebration only to clothes, but have also extended a personalized style service, the Style Helpline, where Myntra’s expert stylists will be available to answer everything from simple style queries to advice on getting the perfect festive look,” he added.

    Talking about the sales target, Subramanian revealed, “We expect it to be a record breaking Diwali, with over 3X growth in sales as compared to last year.”

    The fashion e-tailer also designed a ‘Made for Myntra Collection,’ which includes over 5,000 exclusive styles and collections by some of the most respected designers and brands like FCUK, UCB, Elle, SuperDry, Biba, FabIndia and Antony Moratto.

    The company is offering every shopper with assured money back with every order – minimum Rs 100 up to Rs 1 lakh and five gold vouchers from Tanishq, to be won every day.

     

    Snapdeal

    All set to lure customers to its portal, Snapdeal is offering 50 per cent off and 1+1 offer on many of its products. The Delhi-based e-tailer is also offering 60-70 per cent discount on mobile phones and gadgets.

    “The intention is to try and cater to every single consumer. Because we are trying to cater to everyone, we have products for everyone. There has been a big ensemble of celebrities, who have come on board for the same,” said Snapdeal VP-offline marketing Maneesh Goel.

    “We are aiming to double our normal sales this festive period like last year,” revealed Goel who added that the company is already seeing a 30 per cent increase in its daily order and sales average. Snapdeal recently crossed $1 billion (over Rs 6,100 crore) in sales this fiscal.

    The portal is offering up to 50 per cent discounts on home appliance, up to 40 per cent on watches, around 50 per cent on gadgets along with 1+1 offers on ethnic wears, footwear, clutches etc.

     

    Google India

    Celebrating the occasion, the search-engine giant Google has launched ‘Grand Diwali Mela’ to cash in on the festival of lights.

    Google has also set up a ‘Grand Diwali Mela’ website, which provides two activities that Indians love to indulge in: shopping and entertainment.

    The powered by sponsor for the site is Amazon India while the presented by sponsor is Lakme. Other sponsors for the site include OLX, Fiat, Line messenger, Horlicks among others. It has also partnered with Shah Rukh Khan’s Happy New Year, which is set to release on the day after Diwali.  

    It allows users from across India to try out everyday products through samples at Re 1, play games that are in sync with the cultural moment, stream movies for free and watch great content from the upcoming film Happy New Year.

    At the ‘Grand Diwali Mela,’ consumers can also experience gaming via a platform called Centerstage Hungama.com. On this online ‘zone’, consumers can stream two Bollywood films of their choice. A game called Diwali Chakri has been launched exclusively for this occasion. In association with Rummy Circle, it allows users to play with other card game enthusiasts across the country. Gaming hour will be from 9-10 pm and prizes include online offers and merchandise.

    Last month, Google stated plans of launching a virtual shopping and entertainment platform by tying up with the media buying agency GroupM. While GroupM is responsible for bringing brands onto the platform, Google provides the technical support.

    The website, which will run live till 22 October, invites patrons to try samples for products across various categories at just one rupee each, and to play and win awesome prizes and a chance to hang out with celebrities.

     

    Other sites

    Riding high on the festive season, CouponDunia, has brought together the country’s most popular e-commerce stores to give its users 30 exclusive offers over the next 15 days as part of ‘Deal-Wali Diwali’. These offers include: Rs 250 gift card on Rs 999 shopping for Amazon, Buy-1-Get-1-Free in Dominos, Flat 33 per cent off above Rs 2999 in FabFurnish, Flat 45 per cent off on Hotel Bookings at Goibibo, Flat Rs 500 off on Flights at Yatra.

    Jabong is also offering huge discounts on lifestyle products. On purchase of two products of American Swan, one can get one product of the company free. Apart from this, one can book a home with just Rs 999 under ‘Living Room Bonanza’ and will also be entitled to 20 per cent discount on total cost.

    With the massive discounts offered and customers being treated as kings, this Diwali marks the growth of the e-commerce sector in India. So, shop till the discounts last and we at Indiantelevision.com wish you a happy Diwali and a fun festive season.

     

  • Amazon reportedly in talks to buy Jabong in India

    Amazon reportedly in talks to buy Jabong in India

    MUMBAI: With the rivalry rising in the e-commerce space, it looks like the Indian arm of Amazon is ready to heat it up a notch.  The e-tailer is reportedly in talks with Indian fashion site Jabong to acquire it.

     

    According to a report in a leading daily, the talks are at a preliminary stage and despite being valued at around $500 million in a recent regulatory filing, Jabong is holding out for $700 million as it reports to have multiple suitors.

     

    Denying commenting on the speculations, Amazon said, “We do not comment on anything we may or may not do in the future.”

     

    The report quoted a person working with the US e-tailer as saying that Jabong was ideal for acquisition since Flipkart had acquired Myntra in May for around $330 million.

     

    Flipkart-Myntra reportedly has 50 per cent of India’s online fashion retail market share with Jabong at 25 per cent.

     

    Amazon CEO Jeff Bozos had promised to invest $2 billion in its India operations with a big chunk of it going towards acquisitions.

     

    Fashion e-tailer Jabong is part of a global group after its investors German venture capital group Rocket Internet and with Swedish investor Kinnevik announcing a merger of five emerging market fashion start-ups. The merged entity is called Global Fashion Group (GFG) and worth about worth 2.7 billion euros or around Rs 21,000 crore.

     

    The company’s CEO Arun Chandra Mohan has also been pretty optimistic about the company’s outlook and had said in a recent interview to the paper said, “I believe the valuation of my company is going to be significant. We are going to be a billion dollar business.”

     

    Amazon India started offering fashion products on its marketplace in May, and an acquisition offers a swift route to scaling up. In the US, Amazon chose a similar strategy to improve its fashion credentials by buying Zappos in 2009. 

  • Jabong unveils an exclusive collection ‘Alia Bhatt for Jabong’

    Jabong unveils an exclusive collection ‘Alia Bhatt for Jabong’

    MUMBAI: After Karan Johar and Shilpa Shetty, it’s now Alia Bhatt who has turned designer. Alia Bhatt has joined hands with Jabong.com to launch her line of apparel ‘Alia Bhatt for Jabong’, which will retail exclusively on the portal.

     

    The new collection was launched today at a fashion show at Four Seasons in Mumbai where she showcased her collection on the ramp as designer and showstopper.

     

    While Jabong is known for its association with movie stars like the fair and lovely girl Yami Gautam and the Heropanti famed Kirti Sanonas, this is the first time Jabong has launched an entire line fashioned by an iconic star.

     

    Commenting on the launch of the collection Jabong.com founder and CEO Arun Chandra Mohan said, “We have been looking for someone who is young, confident, stylish and has a great connect with the youth, who better than Alia Bhatt who has ingenious sense of style and knack for fashion to be associated with. We are happy to introduce Alia Bhatt’s collection exclusively on Jabong.  This new collection is all about catering to the needs of young girls who want to make a style statement.”

     

     The collection is designed by Bhatt herself and befits the actress’s personal sense of style. The apparel range targeting the GenY includes bohemian line, the casual denim line or clubbing / party line, ripped jeans, leather jackets and floral. The collection makes a direct connect with Alia’s wardrobe. The collection also includes shoes for young girls.

     

    Bhatt said, “I’ve had a great time creating a fashion line with Jabong; the shoot we did with Farrokh Chothia was very special and exactly how I imagined. And now comes the best part, sharing the experience and the brand with my fans and everyone out there who just loves clothes. Online shopping is the new rage which is enhancing the shopping experience altogether, and Jabong has the ability and the reach to deliver the experience right to your doorstep.”

     

    Having tied up with designer Rohit Bal, and having launched some leading international fashion brands like Miss Selfridge, River Island, the online e-tailer is looking for many more A-class designer collections and global fashion brand launches this year. 

  • Puma India appoints new MD Abhishek Ganguly

    Puma India appoints new MD Abhishek Ganguly

    MUMBAI: Soon after Rajiv Mehta quit the company after nine years, Puma India has announced the appointment of Abhishek Ganguly, as its new managing director.

     

    Talking about the new appointment Puma EEMEA region GM said, “We’re delighted to ring in Abhishek’s appointment as the managing director of Puma India as one of the founding directors of PUMA India. Abhishek brings with him a wealth of experience that will guide the brand towards its next leap in India.”

     

    “Puma India has delivered an outstanding performance during the last nine years and I look forward to the continued progress of this great brand of ours with Abhishek,” he added.

     

    Ganguly previously had been spearheading the sales and retail functions for the brand and had joined Puma right at its inception in 2005 as a founding director. His appointment comes at a time when the brand is taking bold steps in its new positioning to be the fastest brand in the world. The brand recently launched the Forever Faster campaign.

     

    Puma India now has around 300 stores in 100 cities and towns. The company has opted for the hybrid retail model in India which is made up of franchises as well as owned-and-operated stores. As much as 15 per cent of its stores are owned-and-operated. And 12 per cent of its annual revenue comes from online platforms such as Myntra, Jabong and Flipkart.

  • Flipkart launches third private brand – Citron

    Flipkart launches third private brand – Citron

    MUMBAI: Bangalore-based e-retailer Flipkart announced its in-house home appliances and personal healthcare brand — Citron.

     

    The label includes a wide range of cooking utilities and grooming products. According to the press release, the product range in electronics includes electric kettles, sandwich makers, hand blenders and pop-up toasters while the range in the personal healthcare category has shavers and trimmers, hair straighteners and dryers.

     

    Flipkart, which has so far raised $1.75 billion from investors forayed into the private labels segment in 2012 with Digiflip, selling digital accessories, before launching tablets under the brand. Flipkart had also launched lifestyle private brand Flippd in January this year.

     

    Excited with the recent launch, Flipkart SVP-Retail Kalyan Krishnamurthy said, “The launch of Citron is our next step in expanding the private labels offering at Flipkart. This enables us to offer our customers quality products at a great value for yet another category after lifestyle and tablets.”

     

    “In the next three months we will expand into selling various other products such as irons, induction cooktops, juicers, mixers etc.,” he added.

     

    While the home appliances products are priced between Rs 500 and Rs 999, the personal healthcare products are available at Rs 549- 949.

     

    While most online fashion portals like Jabong and Myntra (which Flipkart recently acquired) have multiple private labels in clothing, Flipkart has been one of the first to introduce its own range in electronics like tablets and other gadgets.

  • E-commerce gives thumbs up to Budget 2014

    E-commerce gives thumbs up to Budget 2014

    MUMBAI: The e-commerce sector is a happy lot. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in his maiden budget announced that manufacturing units will be allowed to sell their products through retail including e-commerce platforms without any additional approval.

     

    This paves path for the foreign direct investment (FDI) in the manufacturing sector.

     

    Foreign consumer brands with manufacturing units in the country have been piggybacking on the online retailers’ potential growth which is currently estimated to be at $3.2 billion.

     

    PwC India technology leader Sandeep Ladda says, “Liberalisation of FDI in e-commerce sector will provide much-needed certainty to foreign players and to a sector that has the promise to provide increased commerce and generate employment in the country. This will also provide boost to the sector and create healthy competition so as to benefit all the constituents in the ecosystem – consumers, government, e-commerce players, and retailers in general.”

     

    While the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) is keen on opening e-commerce to FDI, as was made abundantly clear in the meeting with industry stakeholders, they were also clear that they needed to understand how FDI would help boost manufacturing.

     

    American Swan CEO and director Anurag Rajpal says, “A more robust online retail sector will spur manufacturing and help an economic revival. India currently does not allow global online retailers from selling goods directly to customers but allows them to own 100 per cent of a marketplace business, where third-party suppliers can use their platform. Both Amazon and eBay use such a platform to operate in the country.”

     

    Amazon India, which recently launched its first TVC in the country during IPL 7 and promises delivery on the same day, feels that FM’s announcement is a positive statement of intent for the e-commerce industry. “It recognises the role of e-commerce companies in the growth of manufacturing sector. Following this statement, we are hopeful of a more positive and liberalised policy on e-commerce in the near future aimed to help grow the manufacturing industry,” says a spokesperson from the e-retailer.

     

    One of the biggest players of this space in the country, Flipkart co-founder and CEO Sachin Bansal thinks this is a forward looking budget and hopes to see results over time. “The focus on giving a fillip to infrastructure and skill development is very encouraging. The fact that we could see a GST roll out by the end of the year is very positive and will augur well for all sectors. The attention to facilitating entrepreneurship and the allocation towards the National Rural Internet and Technology Mission is an extremely positive move, as collectively they provide the opportunity for both individuals as well as businesses to go digital,” he opines.

     

    Brands feel that the move will give a push to the manufacturing sector, and will also encourage foreign companies to set up manufacturing facilities in India.

     

    Currently, India allows wholly-owned overseas subsidiaries in single-brand retailers that sell products under a single label through physical stores such as Zara, Panasonic or Marks & Spencer. However, the catch is that they have to get clearance from Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) and produce 30 per cent of their products within the country.

     

    Moreover, other announcements in the budget too signal a positive way for the online sector. More internet penetration and connection in the rural areas, increase in logistics because of increase in railway freight and decrease in excise duties on shoes, apparel etc bring in good news for the portals.

     

    Jabong’s co-founder & MD Praveen Sinha feels that though it is still unclear that how increase in service tax on online advertising will impact the sector, one will have to wait and watch how these announcements will be implemented. 

  • Jabong partners with Humpty Sharma ki Dulhania

    Jabong partners with Humpty Sharma ki Dulhania

    MUMBAI: Jabong, partners with the new upbeat movie by Karan Johar under Dharma Production – Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania. A part of the tie-up, Jabong  will unveil an exclusive collection defining the new age fashion exuding elan, a range inspired by the movie and the looks of the lead star cast – Bollywood’s new heartthrobs  – Varun Dhawan  playing Humpty Sharma and Alia Bhatt playing Kavya Pratap at Crown Plaza, Okhla in Delhi.

    Jabong founder and managing director Praveen Sinha said, “We are highly elated to launch this stylish and chic Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania collection on Jabong. We are only growing strength to strength in the e-commerce sector, and this collaboration exemplifies the stature we hold in the market. When such magnum opus brand names show an inclination in getting associated with us, it exudes nothing, but power of e commerce and Jabong. The fashion industry draws heavily from Bollywood; we at Jabong cater to such eclectic needs of people. From international apparel honchos to the classic Bollywood fashion parade, Jabong.com now has everything under one roof.”

    Dharma Productions marketing head Siddharth Kadam said, “Movies and shopping are the two experiences people of India not only enjoy but also celebrate. Witnessing the boom in online retail, such associations are going to become more popular with a Bollywood style collection inspired by the movies. There is a huge market of young, fashionable buyers wanting to dress like film stars. We are happy to partner with Jabong for our film Humpty Sharma ki Dhulhania.”

    Bottomline Media managing director Tanaaz Bhatia said, “Our association with Jabong.com goes far back and it has been a wonderful experience to work with them. We believe the Humpty Sharma collection will create a new trend amongst the youth especially after the movie is proving to be a hit already! We look forward to create many such associations with Jabong.com and our upcoming films.”

    Click here for event pictures

  • Flipkart and Myntra join hands

    Flipkart and Myntra join hands

    MUMBAI: The e-commerce sector saw a purple patch last year and continues to do so.

     

    Recently, LimeRoad raised $15 million series B funding; Jabong too closed a multi-hundred million dollar investment deal and Amazon India entered the fashion and lifestyle category.

     

    Keeping up with the competition is surely going to be tough. Therefore, to bring high quality and affordable lifestyle products to the customers, Flipkart has joined hands with Myntra, an e-commerce platform for fashion and lifestyle products. Bangalore-based Myntra has partnered with more than 650 leading fashion and lifestyle brands in the country.

     

    Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal, the co-founders of Flipkart, and Myntra’s founders, Mukesh Bansal and Ashutosh Lawania, are excited to work with each other. In this new association, along with being the CEO of Myntra, Mukesh Bansal will also head the fashion business for Flipkart and join the board.

     

    “We believe that the future of fashion in India is e-commerce. We have known Mukesh for a long time and are delighted to partner with him. Myntra has a strong team with excellent domain knowledge. They also have the best relationships with lifestyle brands. This partnership will strengthen both our positions in the fashion space. We will continue to work as independent entities and grow together as leaders in the Indian fashion and lifestyle industry,” said Flipkart co-founder Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal jointly through a statement.

     

    “We are excited to partner with Flipkart, the biggest e-commerce platform in India. Sachin, Binny and their team have built a pioneering e-commerce platform on a foundation of strong technology and customer centricity. Flipkart is the most powerful e-commerce brand in India and has a very ambitious agenda to build the next generation of retail in India. Leveraging mutual strengths, we will build Myntra into India’s leading fashion powerhouse and create many original fashion brands,” said Myntra co-founder and CEO Mukesh Bansal.

     

    This partnership will support Flipkart’s and Myntra’s shared mission to bring high quality and affordable fashion and lifestyle products to each and every Indian consumer. Post this announcement, Flipkart and Myntra will continue to work as independent entities and grow together as leaders in the Indian e-commerce industry.

  • Jabong WOWs customers, stays ahead of the ‘pack’

    Jabong WOWs customers, stays ahead of the ‘pack’

    MUMBAI: According to the IAMAI, digital commerce grew by 33 per cent to Rs 62, 967 crore last year vis-a-vis Rs 47, 349 crore in 2012. With increasing internet penetration, e-commerce growth is only headed north.

    While it is becoming routine for a growing number of people to shop online, what is the clincher that makes consumers decide in favour of one e-retailer over the other? The answer lies in innovation and re-invention; qualities that Jabong.com claims to specialise in.   

    For starters, marketing, operations and all other critical components of Jabong are well integrated with social media in keeping with the company’s mantra: to create superlative customer experiences every time.

    Significantly, the approach to social media is “to be open-source.” “This affects the way we engage, the tonality and the words we use. Also, it has created a culture of being proactive rather than reactive. We are glad it’s been appreciated by our customers,” says Jabong’s co-founder and MD Praveen Sinha.

    Secondly, the online retailer is high on EQ (emotional quotient). It understands that when a customer buys from Jabong, it’s not just a product that has been ordered but there are emotions attached to the purchase. According to Sinha, this aspect has a deep impact on Jabong’s culture of creating customer WOW.

    Thirdly, all comments, suggestions and complaints are taken very seriously. A case in point is the Jabong design hack which is the result of a seemingly innocuous tweet sent to all major e-commerce companies by a gentleman from Bangalore. Jabong took up the gauntlet and initiated a design hack-a-thon where sundry designers and even orthopaedics sat together and brain-stormed to turn the somewhat bulky courier container used by the e-retailer into a hip, easy-to-carry delivery bag. “The intention was to host some brilliant minds at our headquarters in Gurgaon and come up with interesting solutions to the challenge. The focus was on the solution, which was to make the courier delivery bag easy to carry, efficient, lighter (if possible) and fashionable. Jabong will now work with the winning team to build a prototype,” says Sinha.

    Courier services have had to evolve in the last 2-3 years for serving e-commerce. The fast turn-around-times, different sized packages, time scheduling of deliveries, cash collection on delivery and increasing service expectations at the doorstep are aspects attached to the delivery part, which was not an expectation pre e-commerce. All these are very recent and every delivery company is currently focusing on them and improving.

    The process was completed in four stages. In the first stage, participants tried to better understand the challenge. The second stage had a lot of research going into finding a solution for the human body to carry weight while doing less work. The third stage saw the teams engage in design thinking and lean prototyping to come up with three designs. The last stage was a feasibility check, after which, the most practical solution was presented. A core parameter was to re-design the bag at a price competitive to the existing cost. Indeed, Jabong will work along with the winners to come up with a prototype in three months. Sinha informs that 25 people participated in the activity that was judged by Jabong operations director Pratik Gupta, MIT Media Labs innovator Anirudh Sharma, and GoJavas COO Vijay Ghadge.

    Two teams won with team one comprising a biker (Gourav Gupta), an engine designer (Abhikaran Singh), a food enthusiast (Rakshit Kerni), an artist (Sahil Bindra) and IshanPadgotra from JagritiYatra. Whereas team two was made up by a student (Mohd Salman), a professional from a startup (Sameer Malik) and a user experience designer (Arunesh Moudgil).

    If Jabong can think of improving on something as minor as its courier bag, even if it is in response to a consumer complaint that says a lot about how seriously the brand takes its consumers.