Independence Day sales: E-tailers are all smiles after 23% surge in orders

E-commerce firms -- such as Amazon, Flipkart, and Tata Neu -- are witnessing a significant surge in orders in various Independence Day sale events, reflecting the maturing status of India's e-commerce industry.

Independence Day sales mark the kick-off of major sales in the latter part of the year, setting the stage for festival season sales in the coming months. After starting on August 4, this year’s Independence Day sales have seen a remarkable 23 per cent surge in order numbers compared to the previous year, with volume growing across key segments, according to an analysis by SoftBank-backed e-commerce tech firm Unicommerce.

“E-commerce in India has come a long way in the past three years, with consistent growth throughout the year instead of just growth spikes in a few months in a year,” said Kapil Makhija, chief executive officer of Unicommerce. “This journey reflects a maturing ecosystem and demonstrates that brands (offline and digital-first alike) are focusing on e-commerce as their core strategy and are prioritising providing a seamless experience to consumers instead of focusing on acquiring customers through discounted prices.”

For instance, the home decor sector experienced a substantial order volume rise of 37.8 per cent. Beauty and personal care saw year-on-year growth of 26.8 per cent, while the fashion and accessories segment recorded a 14.7 per cent uptick, and eyewear experienced an 18 per cent surge within the same timeframe.

Offline retailers, too, are hopeful about higher footfall during the ongoing Independence Day sales.

“We expect good growth this Independence Day and expect it to be in low double digits compared to last year. We are currently running a buy-one-get-one free offer and also offering vouchers which can be redeemed in later months,” said Lalit Agarwal, founder and managing director, V-Mart Retail.

Multibrand retail store chain Lifestyle expects better growth to be better over the next three days than the April-June quarter. It expects 4-5 per cent higher sales over Sunday, Monday and Tuesday compared to the kind of growth it saw in the quarter ended June; it also expects same-store sales to be in positive compared to last year's Independence Day sales.

“Discounts are not much as we liquidated most of our stock in the end-of-season sale. Around 40-50 per cent of the merchandise in our stores is the new autumn-winter collection and the remaining stock is going at a flat 40-50 per cent discount; new merchandise will come into our stores from Wednesday onwards,” said Devarajan Iyer, chief executive officer, Lifestyle said.

He also said, “We expect footfall to be higher and hope for a reversal of muted sales trend which we have witnessed for the past few months.”

Amazon India hosted the ‘Great Freedom Festival’ early this month and it concluded recently. Customers explored offers on millions of products and shop from a wide selection. They shopped products from sellers, including artisans and weavers, women entrepreneurs, start-ups, brands, and local neighbourhood stores. These were across categories, including smartphones, consumer electronics, grocery, fashion and beauty essentials, home and kitchen, large appliances and TVs. It offered up to 60 per cent off on appliances, up to 50-80 per cent off on Amazon fashion and beauty essentials, up to 50 per cent off on grocery essentials and up to 70 per cent off on home, kitchen and outdoor.

Some of the top brands which offered these products included Xiaomi, Samsung, LG, Hisense, Ariel, Microsoft, L’Oréal Paris, Lakme, Tresemme, Dove, and Ponds. Customers also got a chance to win up to ~5,000 as cashback during the rewards festival through Amazon Pay. They were also able to avail instant credit up to ~60,000 with Amazon Pay.

 Walmart-owned e-commerce Flipkart recently announced the fifth edition of its flagship sale event ‘Crafted by Bharat’ - a Flipkart Samarth initiative ahead of Independence Day. The event will celebrate India’s rich culture of handicrafts and handlooms by featuring over 100,000 products from more than 300 art forms across the country. The sale will go live on the platform on August 15.

Flipkart will have a dedicated storefront on the platform for the sale event, under which products by women sellers will be specifically highlighted, to honour the distinctiveness that they bring to the table.

 “The Flipkart Samarth initiative and the flagship Crafted by Bharat sale event have been very promising and have made efforts to positively impact over 1.5 million livelihoods so far by bringing the under-served community into a pan-Indian digital market,” said Rajneesh Kumar, chief corporate affairs officer, Flipkart Group.

“Last year, I managed to sell all the products that were on display and my revenue jumped to 3X,” said Vipul Shukla, Meghdoot Herbal. “I look forward to this year’s sale and expect larger participation from the customers not only from my region but across the nation.”

The Tata group’s personalised shopping app Tata Neu also launched its Independence Day sale event, called the Tata Neu Sale Parade, from August 10 to August 13, where it offered massive discounts of up to 85 per cent on apparel and footwear. The firm also offered as much as 70 per cent off on electronic products like mobiles and appliances, and beauty and grooming products. Groceries and fresh fruits were sold at a discount of up to 50 per cent while customers could purchase jewellery at discounts of up to 20 per cent. Domestic flight bookings and hotel stays until October 31 could be bought at a discount of 20 per cent as well during the sale.

Offers abound

Tata Neu is offering up to 70% off on electronic products, 20% on jewellery and 20% on flight tickets

Amazon announced up to 60% off on appliances, 50-80 off on fashion and beauty essentials, 70% on home care, kitchen and outdoor items

Flipkart is offering 100,000 products to “celebrate” rich culture of handicrafts and handlooms

According to Unicommerce, home decor order volume rose 37.8% Y-o-Y; the rise in beauty and personal care was 26.8%