Flipkart’s The Big Billion Days brings lakhs of sellers,

                                 Flipkart’s The Big Billion Days brings lakhs of sellers,
                            MSMEs and kiranas closer to consumers this festive season

• Over 55% growth in new sellers this TBBD, compared to 2020
• 1 in every 3 deliveries will be made by a kirana partner this festive month
• Top artisans and weaver partners from the Flipkart Samarth programme witnessed a growth of  6X this TBBD compared to 2020

As Flipkart’s The Big Billion Days (TBBD) 2021 draws to a close, India has witnessed renewed growth for sellers, kiranas and MSMEs. The consumer response demonstrated the growing adoption of e-commerce, driven by purchases of a wide range of products, increased convenience and user-friendly technology and financial constructs. TBBD 2021 drove robust growth opportunities for sellers and MSMEs and enabled better income and livelihoods for Flipkart’s Wishmasters and supply chain partners including Kiranas.

Nandita Sinha, Vice President - Customer and Growth, Flipkart, said, “This year’s Big Billion Days has been steeped in the spirit of revival and growth, as we saw a resurgence in consumption and a marked shift towards online shopping. We have continued to provide our consumers the best and most relevant offerings,  made available through a large network of sellers and a range of affordability constructs, making their shopping experience easy and seamless. Our efforts to uplift the entire ecosystem also ushered in considerable growth opportunities for MSMEs, sellers and our lakhs of Kirana partners, who benefited immensely from our various financial offerings, better revenues and an expanded reach across the nation.”

Pawan Jangir, Kendalwood, a Flipkart Samarth partner from Sikar, Rajasthan said, “We got onboarded with Samarth just before this year’s Big Billion Days and the experience has been amazing. The kind of support that Flipkart gave us through this program in terms of cataloging and promoting our work on their platform has truly helped us in seeing a steep growth. This TBBD, we crossed the 1 crore revenue mark, which is a milestone not only for us but the entire artisan community. It made us believe that with the help of technology and the right approach, our work can go across the country.”

Ragini Rai, kirana delivery partner from Lucknow said, “While running a stationery store has helped me cover the household expenses and take care of my family,  Flipkart's kirana delivery program has empowered me to provide better education to my children and save enough for their future. This is my first Big Billion Days and I’m excited looking at the earning potential which also spells huge opportunities for me and my children. In a post-pandemic world, such programs are a ray of hope for people like us and have helped elevate our skill sets to offer new opportunities.”

Sellers & MSMEs unlock the true potential of e-commerce

With 1.3 times the number of transacting sellers this year, consisting of MSMEs, artisans, weavers, and craftsmen, more than 10% of them witnessed a 3X growth in sales this year. There were more than 55% new sellers this TBBD, with 57% hailing from Tier-2, Tier-3, and smaller cities and towns such as Jaipur, Surat, Howrah, Tirupur and Panipat, among others.

 

Driving ecosystem participation

There was a significant increase in customer satisfaction with same day deliveries across thousands of pincodes. In a significant effort to augment their income, Flipkart aims to make over 30 million deliveries through kirana delivery partners this festive season.

This Big Billion Days, top artisans and weaver partners from Flipkart Samarth witnessed a growth of 6X compared to TBBD 2020. The Samarth initiative, which started in 2019, aims to uplift and embrace India’s artisans, weavers and micro-enterprises into the e-commerce fold. The most popular Samarath products were from the Homedecor (showpieces, keyholder); Natural Beauty products (shampoos, moisturiser cream), and Women Ethnic (Sari) categories.

India’s premiumisation journey and upgrades for this festive season

This TBBD saw an increasing trend of consumers opting for premium products online, driven by Flipkart’s wide range of affordable and unique premium product options.

• The most popular purchases over the course of the Big Billion Days so far, are across lifestyle, electronics, books and general merchandise, home and mobiles
• The number of premium smartphones sold during the Big Billion Days has doubled from TBBD 2020. From this, 41.78% of premium smartphones were purchased by customers in Tier 3 cities. Every 1 in 5 smartphones sold this TBBD was 5G-enabled.
• Customers purchased lifestyle products from over 44,000 unique brands this TBBD, reflecting a positive sentiment towards stepping out and upgrading fashion wardrobes
• While buying large appliances, about a fifth of all customers opted for an affordability payment construct
• In the consumer electronics segment, smart watches and Fitness bands saw a 100% jump from last year, marking a clear shift towards smart wearables
• The grocery and hyperlocal segments continued to address growing needs, as consumers from across the country shopped for their daily requirements online
• With gardening becoming one of the most-pursued hobbies, Home Improvement Tools, especially Gardening tools, have seen a sharp rise in interest. The Home Improvement category grew by about 80% year on year. Work from home also continues to boost demand for furniture and mattresses in this edition of TBBD.

Consumers load their carts with compassion

The 'Reward a smile' campaign, which was facilitated through the Flipkart app, saw consumers using their rewards to bring smiles to people across the country. Flipkart, in partnership with Give India is distributing meals to underprivileged children, helping them meet their daily nutrient requirements. Over 2,21,928 coins have been donated so far, brightening the faces of thousands of children.

Special constructs that drove affordable access

Innovative and bespoke financial constructs such as Flipkart Pay Later, no-cost EMI, the Flipkart Axis Bank co-branded credit card, and others enabled consumers in buying their products of choice. Accessibility was also a key catalyst, with the entire product range available across all pin codes. The anticipation for TBBD was evident as millions of customers pre-booked products just prior to Early Access by paying just Re.1.

Unique consumer engagement that made the festive season special

Over 1.1 million people from across the country interacted with the live streaming on the Flipkart app. Keeping with the Indian festive spirit, Flipkart has designed and disbursed 'BBD Shagun' (a special reward) for its customers this year. More than Rs. 20 crores have been redeemed by over 20 million customers under this offering.

Enabling growth across the wholesale value chain

The Big Billion Days sale at Best Price cash-and-carry stores and on Flipkart Wholesale across 10,000+ PIN codes in 24 States and Union Territories featured attractive offers for more than 1.5 million kiranas. Flipkart Wholesale continued its focus of digitising Kiranas and the retail ecosystem saw a 1.3X jump in number of kirana and retail members onboarding the platform this Big Billion Days. Indicating a shift in trend to digital commerce for B2B, over 45% of Flipkart Wholesale’s customer base transacted online and 35% of them opted for self-service.

 

Flipkart And Govt. Of Maharashtra Come Together To

 Flipkart And Govt. Of Maharashtra Come Together To Boost The Growth Of Small Scale Businesses And Local Artisans In The State

• MoU signed under the Flipkart Samarth initiative
• Partnership with MSSIDC and MSKVIB in Maharashtra will enable the State’s local artisans, weavers and small scale businesses to showcase their hallmark products to millions of customers across the country

Flipkart, India’s homegrown e-commerce marketplace, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Maharashtra Small Scale Industries Development Corporation (MSSIDC) and Maharashtra State Khadi & Village Industries Board (MSKVIB), to bring local artisans, weavers, craftsmen and SMBs of the state into the e-commerce fold. The MoU to onboard local artisans and entities on the company’s flagship initiative Flipkart Samarth was signed in the presence of Honorable Industries Minister Shri Subhash Desai and Minister of State, Industries, Smt. Aditi Tatkare. 

The partnership under the Flipkart Samarth program will enable Maharashtra’s local artisans, weavers, craftsmen and smaller industries to showcase their hallmark products like Khadi, Paithani sarees, wooden toys, handmade artifacts, jewelry and paper products, purses and other key handicraft products to millions of customers across the country, further adding impetus to the government's ‘#Vocal for Local’ efforts. Flipkart Samarth is a nationwide initiative, which aims to help skilled local artisan communities set up their business on the Flipkart Marketplace in an efficient, transparent and cost-effective manner.

The program seeks to break entry barriers for local artisans by extending time-bound incubation support, which includes benefits in the form of seamless onboarding, free cataloging, marketing, account management, business insights and warehousing support. This will create avenues to increase business and trade inclusion opportunities for these very important segments of society.

The Government of Maharashtra has been leading various state-level initiatives to boost trade inclusion opportunities and provide encouragement to local artisans and handicraft makers. The State government established MSSIDC & MSKVIB to give a new orientation and strength to the development of Small Scale Industries in the State of Maharashtra. They play a vital role in the revival, development and growth of traditional village industries, products and handicrafts of Maharashtra by responding to the diversified needs of rural artisans and marketing their products in India and abroad.

Shri Subhash Desai, Minister for Industries & Mining, Government of Maharashtra, said, “MSMEs play a huge role in boosting the economy of the state and are vital to the state’s socio-economic development. In the post-COVID-19 era, we explored revolutionary measures to get better market opportunities and empowering the handicrafts and handlooms industry.”

Smt. Aditi Tatkare, Minister of State - Industries, Government of Maharashtra, said, “Partnerships like these will give more impetus to Khadi & Village Industries to scale up and generate livelihood opportunities.”

Shri Rajneesh Kumar, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Flipkart Group, said, “We are excited to have the opportunity to partner with MSSIDC and MSKVIB to enhance social and commercial development of local artisans, weavers and smaller industries while bringing the heritage of the State on the platform. E-commerce can play an integral role in the growth of MSMEs across the country by giving them national market access to 300 million customers that shop on our platform. Flipkart Samarth is a cherished initiative that provides these businesses with the necessary support, and we hope to continue reaching more such local businesses to help them reap the benefits of e-commerce.”

Shri Baldev Singh, Principal Secretary – Industries, Energy and Labour, Govt. of Maharashtra, said, “We are looking forward to this collaboration to bring valuable business knowledge to our handicraft makers and artisans and promote their hallmark products across India.”

Dr. M. Neelima Kerketta, CEO, Maharashtra State Khadi & Village Industries Board (MSKVIB), said, “It will be a good platform for providing an efficient solution for marketing village industries products. This will act as a driving force for encouraging rural micro artisans to earn their livelihood in a smart and modern manner.”

Shri Pravin Darade, Managing Director, Maharashtra Small Scale Industries Development Corporation (MSSIDC), said, “This initiative seeks to break entry barriers for the local artisans and will offer not only long term sustainable livelihood support but would also encourage artisans to conserve & pass on the local arts & crafts skills from generation to generations.”

Flipkart Samarth program was launched in 2019 to build a sustainable and inclusive platform for under-served, domestic communities and businesses to empower them with greater opportunities and better livelihood. Flipkart Samarth is now able to support the livelihood of over 7,50,000 artisans, weavers and craftsmen across India and is working towards bringing more such sellers to the platform. Recently, Flipkart also announced the availability of the Marathi interface for shoppers on the platform, bringing it closer to consumers in the state.

 

Flipkart brings exciting festive offerings with

 Flipkart brings exciting festive offerings with ‘Big Billion Days Specials’, unveils over 200 special edition products

Partners with leading brands, sellers and artisans to co-create an innovative range of products across categories available only during the 6 days of The Big Billion Days

 Flipkart, India’s homegrown e-commerce marketplace, is aiming to make the festive shopping experience with the Big Billion Days even more special for consumers this year, with the introduction of a bigger and more attractive range of special edition products. The Big Billion Days Specials are a range of unique products across categories, co-created with leading brands, including limited edition products and collectables.

In partnership with more than 100 brands, exciting products across categories including fashion, electronics, mobile phones, large appliances, personal care, handicrafts and others will be made accessible to consumers. These 200+ products will be available only during the 6 Big Billion Days, which begins from midnight of October 16, with early access for Flipkart Plus consumers  15, until

 Flipkart had first introduced the Big Billion Days Specials in 2019, with the aim to create curated special collections, that are thematic or have industry-first innovations, to make the consumer shopping experience a memorable one, while meeting their growing aspirations. The number of partnerships for this year’s Big Billion Days Specials has more than doubled, as Flipkart continues to strengthen the partnership ecosystem and bring brands closer to consumers across the country.

 In addition to brand partnerships, this year’s Big Billion Days also brings together lakhs of artisans from across the country as part of the Samarth initiative. Craft techniques as old as Dokra Decor Craft amongst others will be made available for customers across India, as part of the festive fervour. Today, Flipkart Samarth supports the livelihoods of over 6,00,000 artisans, weavers and craftsmen across India and Flipkart consistently works towards bringing more such sellers to the platform through inclusive ecosystem partnerships, taking into account partners of all scales and specialisation.

This year’s Big Billion Days Specials have been curated leveraging Flipkart’s strong consumer understanding, aiming to make available a wide range of products across price points, that will make the festive season special for people across the country.

Some of the Big Billion Days Specials that customers will get access to this year include: 

• Motorola - India's First 3 in1 Smart Wireless device
• An Ethnic Range Curated By Kareena Kapoor for Imara
• Bikaji Limited edition 24K Gold leaf sweets
• Exclusive Virat Kohli Line of One8 products
• Puma X Big Billion Days , Catch Limited Edition Sneakers in Big Billion Days Flagship Colours 
• Anti - Microbial athleisure range from Flying machine 
• Denver - Shahrukh Khan's new autograph range
• Bluestar - Virus Deactivator AC
• India's first Smart TV with Sound by Onkyo by Nokia
• Room in a Box Furniture
• Stonesoup hygiene kits which are a part of Samarth’s ‘cart for a cause’ programme
• Special handicrafts such as Biswa Bangla Handcrafted Dokra and Kansha Chhanta

 

Some of the Big Billion Days Specials products will give customers a chance to meet their favourite celebrities, including Virat Kohli, Salman Khan and Ananya Pandey.

 

Nandita Sinha, Vice President – Events, Engagement & Merchandising at Flipkart, said, “The Big Billion Days is truly a festival for us and we look forward to making this year equally special for our consumers across the country. We aim to bring joy to people, in big ways and small, through a diverse offering on our platform. Every year, Flipkart leverages consumer insights and works collaboratively with thousands of brands in the ecosystem, to bring forth the best products. The phenomenal response we received from the entire ecosystem for the Big Billion Days Specials in 2019 encouraged us to partner with an even larger number of brands and celebrities to make it extra special for consumers this year. We are confident our partnerships and special edition products will help onboard new customers and chart a sharper growth trajectory for our partner brands.”