The peak of the Indian ecommerce year is coming in October and pundits predict it will be the biggest festive season ever. “Peak” in India comes in advance of the festivals season, specifically Diwali, and is increasingly important to internet retailing in the world’s biggest democracy.
About 20 million people are expected to shop on the variety of online marketplaces and ecommerce platforms during the festive sales period next and that is predicted to translate into sales of around $3 billion. It’s been reported that the likes of Flipkart and Amazon have already significantly increased their advertising spend to promote themselves.
Leading the charge for Indian peak is Walmart-owned but homegrown retailer and marketplace Flipkart. It will be holding its fifth annual Big Billion Days (BBD) from the 10th until 14th of October. We’ve written about that before.
Flipkart will be promoting goods it sells itself, and those from 3P retailers on its marketplace, over the period with a specific focus on deep discounts on private label domestic products such as fridges and other white goods. BBD is such a popular event that Flipkart says that it has seen a dramatic surge in seller registrations in the past few months.
This year marks the fifth edition of TBBD and we are focused on making it the biggest and best one yet. After working closely with our sellers and brands over the last few months, we plan to deliver unparalleled, diverse, and affordable offerings to customers in every corner of India.
– Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO, Flipkart
At Tamebay we’ve been increasingly looking at India this year. Not only is it an area of fantastic ecommerce growth but a crucial battleground for the big players with Walmart, Amazon and eBay each making enormous investments and strategic plays for a share. Amazon is yet to announce the dates for its ‘Great Indian Festival’ but it is expected to be at roughly the same time as BBD.
