Diwali last year was a period of high’s and low’s. While sales figures saw multiplied spikes, logistics and parcel deliveries were messed up with some parcels not even leaving the warehouses of logistics players. Adding to poor management, logistics firms, as also etailers to a certain extent, were not ready for the orders that exploded their way.
A bitter truth learnt the hard way, this year everyone seems to be preparing well in advance for the festive season. As per Technopark Advisors (management consulting firm), ecommerce firms are likely to register a $10bn sales figure this year, of which 40% would come from the festive season of October, November and December. Last year, the industry gave $7bn sales with 40% coming from the festive season alone.
Snapdeal registered a 15-fold increase in its traffic last Diwali. In lieu of possible growth this year, the online marketplace has been taking efforts to polish up the various departments including logistics, supply chain, technology and finance.
Idi Srinivas Murthy, senior vice president, marketing, Snapdeal said, “We have launched faster last-mile delivery solutions and a refreshed user interface. We are also developing a host of solutions for our 1,50,000 sellers.”
Recently, Snapdeal introduced Snapdeal Instant, its one-hour delivery service in select cities as faster delivery solution to areas within a certain reach. Additionally, the etailer has been sprucing up the seller side of things with a number of benefits and facilities for them.
No doubt, online furniture has increased in popularity this year as customers have warmed up to the idea of buying large white goods online. Pepperfry has every intention to capitalize on the demand from customers. The furniture etailer has taken efforts to improve on the following:
Chief marketing officer Kashyap Vadapalli said, “Our sales were up 200% (last Diwali) as we took necessary steps both at the logistics and supply end.”
Prominent logistics player, Delhivery is all set for the surge in orders this year. “Delhivery is continuously investing in technology, infrastructure and automation to ensure such surges are managed well during the festive season,” said Mohit Tandon, co-founder, Delhivery.
Despite the preparations and expectations, a certain level of deviation should be expected. Whether etailers and logistics players can handle the surprises remains to be seen. Also most of the logistics companies are shared by etailers so how they dedicate resources for each would also be interesting to know.
After dwindling with her family business, into travel and hospitality, for more than 3 years, Pooja Vishant found her true love in writing. Happy-go-lucky and cheerful, she loves pink; so pink is the way to go if you want to get into her good books. The Associate Editor keeps track of even a leaf that has moved in the ecommerce world!
Leave a Comment
