Flipkart Global will allow Indian sellers to plug into 190 eBay markets

Flipkart Global is an interesting programme that will allow Indian sellers to plug into eBay’s marketplaces across the world, as many as 190 countries. Apparently, 100k sellers on Flipkart will now be able to sell their products online via the various eBay sites.

eBay India was recently rebranded as Flipkart in an investment deal we wrote about here: eBay India is Flipkart as of today.

Anil Goteti is the head of the eBay India business at Flipkart and says: “This programme will enable sellers to export their products globally and this would mean access to sellers in pretty much all the countries in the world. This will allow not just Indian customers in other parts of the world to access these products, but also will target a lot of global customers.

The programme will enable sellers from India access to over 171 million active customers of eBay globally in over 190 international markets. Some of these markets include the United States, UK, Germany, Canada and Australia.

India has immense export potential and there are many SMEs (small and medium-scale enterprises) who have unique products but don’t know how to make them available to global buyers. With the launch of Flipkart Global, we’re removing traditional growth barriers and giving them a platform to reach out internationally and expand sales.”

This is clearly interesting on several levels. It’s good news for indian sellers who want to sell into the West and it looks like eBay and Flipkart will be doing their best to remove barriers there. India is the world’s second most populous country and has a lot of potential, and plenty to gain, from decent commerce links with places like the UK.

But equally UK traders, and others, can justifiably eye this announcement with some scepticism. The experience with Chinese sellers running rings around the UK tax authorities, and enjoying an unfair advantage over EU merchants for many years, has been instructive. Let’s hope lessons have been learnt and eBay do their bit.