E-Commerce Players See Lucrative Demand From Rural India During Festive Season

Logistical issues such as huge terrain, limited connectivity, and unpredictable weather creates issues for the e-commerce business in rural India

E-commerce players in India are finding an increase in demand in the rural regions of the country. To capitalise on this interest in the festive season, the companies are now looking to expand their network in the Tier-II and Tier III towns and hinterlands.

While logistical issues such as huge terrain, limited connectivity, and unpredictable weather creates issues for the e-commerce business in rural India, the players in the sector are actively working towards elevating their infrastructure and technology in the regions.

Speaking to Business Standard, Harsh Chaudhary, VP, Growth, Flipkart, revealed that the company’s recently concluded ‘The Big Billion Days’ (TBBD) sale saw more than 2,800 small towns participating in the event. These included even Tier-IV cities like Sihor, Bhota, Kamalapuram, Vadar, and Vairengte. 

The executive observed that more and more customers in these regions are looking for affordable options to meet their shopping needs. “While the top metro cities continued to witness growing demand during the first 24 hours of TBBD 2024, the shopping festival also saw demand from customers from Tier-II+ cities such as Medinipur, Hisar, Berhampore, Bankura, and Agartala, to name a few,” Chaudhary stated.

Amazon is also working to meet the growing demand for online shopping from rural India. The company in its Amazon Great Indian Festival (AGIF) 2024 sale found that 75 per cent of all smartphone sales came from Tier-II and Tier-III towns. About 70 per cent of all premium sales in the segment ranging above Rs 30,000 came from these regions.

As a result, the company has now expanded its delivery infrastructure and technology to help establish a strong and secure network that allows it to cater to the needs of the customers in the rural regions of the country. 

To meet this surge in demand, Flipkart launched 11 new ‘fulfilment centres’ (FCs) across nine cities and Amazon also set up 3 new FCs this year. The latter also launched a delivery station in Leh.