E-commerce order volumes surge 18.7% during Republic Day sales: Unicommerce

E-commerce order volumes during this year's Republic Day sale events increased 18.7 per cent compared to last year, according to a recent report.

The report, by e-commerce enablement platform Unicommerce, analysed order items processed through its platform during the nine days (13th to 21st January) of the Republic Day sale.

The growth of e-commerce during the sale period was supported by attractive deals and nationwide marketing campaigns done by leading marketplaces, the report said.

This helped marketplaces record an impressive year-on-year (Y-o-Y) order growth of 28.7 per cent during the period. Brand websites, on the other hand, reported a muted Y-o-Y growth of just 1.7 per cent, while average order value continued to “showcase strong growth.”

As per the orders processed through Unicommerce's platforms, Northeast states reported high growth rates, with Nagaland and Meghalaya taking the lead to become the top two states in terms of order volume growth.

According to the report, consumer familiarity with e-commerce was evident during the period with a 20.6 per cent increase in prepaid orders. Cash-on-delivery orders, meanwhile, grew 16.2 per cent during the sale period.

“The consistent e-commerce growth affirms the strength and potential of India’s e-commerce industry. E-commerce continues to become a larger part of the retail ecosystem, and sellers are focusing on both online and offline sale channels, in tune with the evolving shopping habits of buyers,” said Kapil Makhija, MD and CEO, Unicommerce.

Republic Day e-commerce sales this year have primarily been driven by electronics, smartphones in particular.

Beginning January 13, Amazon and Flipkart also rolled out their Republic Day sales in India, offering discounts on products like gadgets and electronic items like smartphones, audio devices, laptops, etc. Smartphones like the iPhone 15, Motorola G34, Poco M6, and Redmi Note 13 Pro+, were available at heavy discounts on these e-commerce marketplaces.

Meanwhile, Samsung’s flagship S24 series also witnessed record bookings during the period. More than 250,000 customers in India ordered a Galaxy S24 smartphone since pre-bookings opened in the country on January 18. The company had secured 250,000 pre-bookings for its Galaxy S23 series over a three-week period in India the previous year.

The strong Republic Day sales come on the back of previous well-performing sales such as Black Friday and the festival season 2023 sales.

Last year, the Black Friday weekend saw a 23 per cent surge in e-commerce orders volume compared to the 2022 sale weekend. Moreover, the festival season sale of 2023 also witnessed a whopping 37 per cent growth in order volumes compared to the festival sale period.