Empowering India's e-commerce market

The Indian e-commerce market has experienced remarkable growth in recent years, driven by factors such as increased internet penetration, smartphone adoption, digital payments, and changing consumer behaviour. This growth has created opportunities for livelihoods and has been supported by the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) sector, which plays a crucial role in India’s economy. Contributing significantly to employment generation, economic growth, and poverty reduction, MSMEs hold immense potential.

The Indian government's initiatives, such as "Make in India" and "Startup India", and the ₹1,700-crore allocation in the budget for MSMEs’ digital infrastructure to fuel growth in these enterprises, have been in the right direction. In the grand scheme of India's retail fabric, e-commerce is only warming up. However, its potential to revolutionise how we buy and sell is an indisputable fact.

The Emergence of E-commerce in India and the industry trend

The dawn of Internet accessibility fanned the flames for online trade in India. From books to electronics, gadgets to fashion wear — Indian consumers suddenly had a vast digital marketplace at their fingertips. Amid this e-commerce bull run, Flipkart emerged as a trustworthy platform for millions of customers that catered to the evolving demands of Indian consumers.

With incessant tech advancements and evolving consumer behaviours, the e-commerce landscape is constantly shifting. Convenience, transparency, and personalisation will be major driving forces transforming how we buy and sell online.

India’s online shopper base is estimated to increase to 400–450 million by 2027. 50 million new shoppers were added to the Indian e-retail market, which is ~35% growth over the online shopper base in 2020. New shoppers majorly belong to tier-3 or smaller cities and include Gen Z, a critical cohort that typically starts buying at entry price points. 3 out of 5 shoppers belong to tier-2 or smaller cities, 1 in 3 shoppers belong to low-to-middle income segments, and 1 in 3 shoppers is Gen-Z. Consumers now spend 20% more time per month on a retail platform vs last year.

Flipkart’s impact on India’s e-commerce landscape

Flipkart, a homegrown marketplace platform, has been at the forefront of this transformative journey, empowering MSMEs and driving inclusive economic growth in the country. Given that more than 95% of MSMEs in India are micro in nature, a ready-to-go platform that Flipkart provides is immensely crucial to market the products coming out of Make in India and help them become small-to-medium in nature.

Indeed, through its innovative approach and steadfast commitment to inclusion, Flipkart is inspiring a new cadre of entrepreneurs while playing an instrumental role in harnessing the true potential of India’s e-commerce maze. Today it stands as more than an e-commerce company – it’s a catalyst reshaping India's retail ecology.

Over the last 15 years, Flipkart has been a transformative force in India’s e-commerce landscape.

●It has driven the rapid growth of the online marketplace.

●It has helped businesses embrace digital technology to increase their reach and profits.

●It has contributed to economic development by enhancing India's global competitiveness.

With a remarkable 220% seller growth on the platform since last year, Flipkart has earned the trust of over 14 lakh sellers— reflecting the faith that Indian MSMEs, small businesses, and enterprises have in their capabilities. Flipkart, with a registered user base of 500Mn+is well-positioned to cater to these emerging customer preferences.

By bringing meaningful market opportunities to MSMEs and small businesses, Flipkart has helped promote inclusive growth by creating job opportunities, empowering women, and enabling entrepreneurship among disadvantaged sections of society.

Empowering rural entrepreneurs

MSMEs especially have a big role to play in providing employment opportunities, income generation, and skill development in rural areas, thereby uplifting local economies and reducing regional disparities. Flipkart, too, has been playing its part – it launched the Flipkart Samarth Program in 2019 to build a sustainable and inclusive platform for under-served domestic communities, with a special focus on uplifting and onboarding artisans, weavers, women-led enterprises, and people with disabilities.

Flipkart isn't only changing how it does business; it's also making change happen in society:

1.Inclusive growth: Flipkart promotes widespread prosperity by offering new opportunities to MSMEs and small businesses.

2.Creating jobs: The platform supports countless livelihoods across the country.

3.Empowering women: Flipkart believes in smashing glass ceilings, and its platform facilitates female entrepreneurship.

4.Supporting the disadvantaged: Through its operations, Flipkart aims to uplift marginalised sections of society.

Under the Samarth program, rural entrepreneurs from across the country are onboarded to the platform by securing multiple strategic engagements with state and central ministries, departments, livelihood missions, NGO partners, and entities across the country. To date, Samarth has reached out to sellers across 28 states, grown its seller entity base by 300% over the last year and has also helped entities & businesses grow by 300%. By bringing millions of ambitious entrepreneurs access to a pan-India market, Flipkart Samarth is impacting more than 1.5 million livelihoods nationwide today.

Paving the path for inclusive economic growth

Supporting the development of MSMEs is crucial to ensure sustainable and inclusive economic growth, poverty alleviation and bridging the rural-urban divide. Thus, as India's e-commerce market continues to evolve, the collaboration between platforms like Flipkart and MSMEs will be pivotal in shaping a thriving and inclusive digital economy.

Disclaimer: This article is authored by Rakesh Krishnan, Vice President and Head of marketplace, Flipkart. The opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Business Insider India.