Sunday, August 19, 2012

E-Commerce in India at crucial crossroads

















A country with huge potential for exponential growth in e-commerce market is heading towards an unknown cliff which could lead to the collapse of this structure causing the entire hard work put in by brands which are still struggling to break even, go in vain. No one has pressed the panic button yet, however symptoms are showing up evidently now.

It's difficult to even keep a track of how many so called e-commerce brands are now opening online doors and shutting shop in India. Consumer durables and electronics laid the foundation of this shopping revolution, which sprawled across fashion, apparel, footwear, personal care etc. I have personally noticed that some portals are the right place to order products which maybe not available in India directly to purchase, niche products that may not find a place at the retail outlets are easy to buy online.

However when it comes to meeting consumer expectation on timely and safe delivery these portals are struggling to manage the game of logistics which is putting a heavy pressure on their margins and probably elongating their break even period further, making angel fund investor's backing such portals anxious and owners are finding it difficult to raise fresh round of funding at times.

In a crowd of approximately 1900 online retail portals, here's a look at an info graphic on Indian e-commerce market, also at an article from livemint.com which explains the current state of this industry.

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