Ecommerce Industry in India: India is one of the fastest-growing e-commerce markets worldwide, with millions of new internet users taking advantage of cheap mobile connections to send mobile messages, watch online videos, use mobile services, and of course, to shop. As of 2015, only 26 percent of the local population was using the internet; almost ten times the audience size from a decade prior. According to recent market research, mobile phone internet user penetration in India is projected to reach 37.36 percent of the population in 2021, representing a huge potential in terms of digital and mobile buyer audience. Total internet audiences in India are estimated to surpass 635 million online users in 2021.
As of 2015, the majority of online users in India were male, and the same held true for online shoppers. In India, men accounted for almost two thirds of online shopping audiences. Despite this imbalance in online presence and digital spending, female online shoppers are estimated to account for 42 percent of all Indian e-retail spending in 2020, up from only 20 percent of total retail e-commerce expenditure in 2015. [Source: Statista]
Ecommerce Industry in India is growing
The e-commerce has transformed the way business is done in India. The Ecommerce Industry in India is expected to grow to US$ 200 billion by 2026 from US$ 38.5 billion as of 2017. Much growth of the industry has been triggered by increasing internet and smartphone penetration. The ongoing digital transformation in the country is expected to increase India’s total internet user base to 829 million by 2021 from 560.01 million as of September 2018. India’s internet economy is expected to double from US$125 billion as of April 2017 to US$ 250 billion by 2020, majorly backed by ecommerce. India’s E-commerce revenue is expected to jump from US$ 39 billion in 2017 to US$ 120 billion in 2020, growing at an annual rate of 51 per cent, the highest in the world. [Source: ibef]
Ecommerce-Just another channel
Ecommerce platforms like Amazon, flipkart, paytm are channels for retailers to sell their products. The conflict between offline and online sales has also settled with an understanding that both would coexist. Also, online would complement offline sales as one more channel where customers could be found. Online is just another channel for consumers to buy from. Every retail company is trying to find their feet to incorporate this new channel into their overall channel strategy.
Factors for growth
The growth of Ecommerce Industry in India has been due to a lot of factors, primarily internet user growth.
In 2017, India had 331.77 million internet users. This figure is projected to grow to 511.89 million internet users in 2022. Despite the untapped potential, India already is the second-largest online market worldwide. The majority of India’s internet users are mobile phone internet users, who take advantage of cheap alternatives to expensive landline connections that require desktop PCs and infrastructure. As of 2016, India had 320.57 million mobile phone internet users and forecasts estimate 492.68 million Indian mobile phone internet users by 2022. [Source:Statista]
Low-cost smartphones are driving internet adoption and usage which would potentially unleash a new wave of m-commerce. Customers/Buyers moving rapidly towards e-commerce because of convenience, comfort, choices/variety of sellers from across the country and the price competitiveness that the platform offers.
We understand Ecommerce is still far away from market saturation and still lot of potential to be explored with changing business, political and legal environment. Online retail is preferred over offline coz of convenience, the comfort of delivery, assured delivery, wider variety, easy returns and trusted brands.
