 "Mega Blockbuster Sale' 23.")
Week 1 of the 2023 festive season sale, which concluded on 15 October, saw online platforms clocking a GMV (gross merchandise value) of about Rs 47,000 crore, growing at 19 per cent over Week 1 of the 2022 festive season sale, according to the latest report by Redseer Strategy Consultants. The firm said that high ASP (average selling price) categories steered Week 1 to a robust 19 per cent year-on-year growth.
According to Redseer's latest estimates, the Flipkart Group (consisting of Flipkart, Myntra, and Shopsy) continues to assert its leadership in Week 1 of the 2023 festive season sale. Redseer claimed that the Flipkart Group further gained market share over last year’s sale to reach 63 per cent in GMV terms while also remaining the leader in volume terms. This was followed by Amazon, with a substantial market share. In volume terms, Meesho retained its second position, notably gaining market share in Week 1 of the 2023 festive season sale, with the share increasing to 25 per cent of the total orders, up from 21 per cent in Week 1 of the 2022 festive season sale.
Eight out of the nine days of the sale period this year were in the 'shradh' period, compared to four out of the nine days in 2022. This led consumers to over-index purchases towards "essential upgrades" in this festive season and to prioritise buying and upgrading high ASP categories such as mobiles, electronics, and large appliances, which typically have time-bound deals with easy financing options.
Together, mobiles, electronics, and large appliances drove 67 per cent of the GMV in the Week 1 sale period. The last day of Week 1, the only 'non-shradh' day in Week 1, saw a 36 per cent year-on-year growth compared to the last day of Week 1 in 2022. This was the second-highest year-on-year growth in a single day in this festive season.
"Two Indias clearly emerged in Week 1 of this festive season: One, that is holding on to spending to buy premium products at the right prices and one that is shopping more frequently but spending on value for money products," said Abhishek Tandon, engagement manager at Redseer. "This ties in with our overall consumption thesis, that while Indian consumers are holding back discretionary spends, they are willing to spend if they get the desired value or deals."
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Bolstered by easy financing and a sense of FOMO (fear of missing out) created by the 'pre-book and price-lock' feature being offered by platforms for the first time, premiumisation as a theme was seen to be playing out in these high ASP categories. Further, as per Redseer's survey, 30 per cent of the consumers who shopped high ASP categories in Week 1 utilised easily accessible financing options while making these purchases.
Trends suggest that low ASP categories will continue to grow in the coming days. Redseer’s consumer surveys indicated that in the remainder of the festive season, 55 per cent of the consumers surveyed who shopped during Week 1 are planning to make more purchases in the remaining period. Here, more than 50 per cent of these consumers are planning to make these purchases in fashion. More than 25 per cent of these consumers are planning to purchase other low ASP categories like beauty and personal care and home and living.
Flipkart witnessed a record 1.4 billion customer visits during its flagship festival sales event "The Big Billion Days" (TBBD) 2023. The event, which started on 8 October (with early access for VIP and Plus customers from 7 October) and ended on 15 October, "received a great response from both customers and the extensive network of sellers across the country," said Kalyan Krishnamurthy, chief executive officer of Flipkart Group.
Amazon India's Great Indian Festival (GIF), which also began on the same day with access for Prime members beginning a day earlier, generated a record 95 million customer visits in 48 hours. However, the GIF is a month-long event. Amazon recently said shopping by its Prime members spiked 18 times in the first 24 hours (early access period) of the month-long GIF versus the average daily purchase.
SoftBank-backed e-commerce firm Meesho said it witnessed a record 16 million new app installations during its flagship 'Meesho Mega Blockbuster Sale' live from 6 October to 15 October.
E-commerce retailers are expected to garner sales worth Rs 90,000 crore this festival season, 18 to 20 per cent higher than last year, according to an earlier report by Redseer. This shall be driven by about 140 million shoppers who are expected to be transacting online at least once during the festival month.
