How is Myntra gearing up to face competition from Amazon?

Instead of worrying about the competition in the horizon, following Amazon’s aggressive expansion into the fashion segment, Myntra seems to have taken it in its stride. A number of changes are being incorporated in terms of functioning as well as infrastructure to ensure it can keep up with customer demands and requirements.

1. Three-fold increase in warehouse capacity– Its current 1,50,000 sq.ft warehouse will be expanded to 4,50,000 sq.ft for which it has commissioned two state-of-the-art automated warehouses in Bangalore and Gurgaon, to be operational by the next quarter.
   
   
2. Increase in workforce- A new office has been setup in Bangalore to accommodate the increase in workforce from 700 to 1,500.  
   
   
3. Increase in private labels– The number of tie-ups with private labels is expected to increase to 12 from the current 8.                                                                                                                                                      
4.  Technology development- Mobile apps, especially will be an area of focus for Myntra due to the rising popularity of these with customers. While an iOS app is being planned for August, non-shopping and engagement apps for fashion-related content are in the pipeline too.
   
   
5. Increase in revenue from its own brands- Currently, Myntra’s own labels/brands like Roadster contributes to 20-25% of its revenue. This is expected to increase to about one-third in the coming 12-18 months.
   
   
6. Private labels will be available for sale on Flipkart too, and will probably be expanded to other platforms soon.
   
   
7. Physical stores- It will open physical stores in cities like Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai in the next 18 months to enable customers to touch and feel its private labels to hike their sales.

Myntra has put these robust expansion plans into action in light of the $50 million funding it received from Premji and other group of investors in February and acquisition by Flipkart recently (valued at $350-370 million). Additionally, Flipkart is expected to pump close to $100 million in the next few quarters.

What has Amazon been up to?

Amazon is opening two new fulfilment centres in Karnataka to match its growth and demand from customers.
It expects to participate in B2C e-commerce and hold own inventory, due to the speculations about the government easing up on the FDI regulations.
Its increasing foothold in the fashion segment with recently launched women’s wear, men’s apparel, fashion jewellery and lingerie.

How does an Indian Online Seller benefit from Myntra’s expansion?

Myntra has established its dominance in the fashion industry as a niche marketplace leader. Although it has been acquired by Flipkart per se, it will continue to operate as a separate identity, hence its expansion plans will definitely help to sustain its market leadership or in the least give stiff competition to Amazon.

Take advantage of the improvements that Myntra is putting together, especially on the technology front. With new features and new services, existing customers can be retained while new customers can be gained with the added benefits and value-add features.