Flipkart Wholesale: 70% e-commerce adoption by kiranas during Big Billion Days vis-a-vis year-ago sale

Ease of Doing Business for MSMEs: Walmart-owned Flipkart’s business-to-business (B2B) marketplace Flipkart Wholesale on Tuesday said it recorded 70 per cent e-commerce adoption by kiranas during the Big Billion Days sale in comparison to the last year’s sale. According to the company, over 5 lakh kiranas from 24 states and union territories purchased goods from the B2B marketplace and from its Best Price Stores during the festive sale from October 3 to 10.

Kirana members of Flipkart Wholesale witnessed a 1.8x increase in sales while in terms of categories, the general merchandise saw a 124 per cent growth in purchases, followed by a 50 per cent jump in grocery purchases and a 24 per cent increase in the fashion category. Flipkart Wholesale added that its daily deliveries increased 50 per cent during the sale while over 45 per cent members transacted online.

“Our technology-first approach at helping small businesses grow has resulted in increased adoption of e-commerce and accelerated the pace of digitisation. The benefits of a more resilient and self-reliant B2B eco-system enabled by digitisation will be felt in the long run,” Adarsh Menon, Senior Vice President, and Head, Flipkart Wholesale said in a statement.

Members can get access to credit to stock up their shops and track their balances and dues through Flipkart Wholesale. During the sale event, Flipkart said around 1.5 lakh kiranas were offered up to 14 days interest-free credit and Buy Now Pay Later option with credit line ranging from Rs 10,000 to Rs 25 lakhs. The credit is offered in partnership with banks and fintech lenders. The company said credit was facilitated to the tune of Rs 165 crores for members across categories during the sale. Among customers, 5,400 offices and institutes shopped on the portal claiming GST benefits on their wholesale purchases during Big Billion Days.

On Sunday, Flipkart Wholesale had said that it saw a 1.3X jump in the number of kirana and retail members onboarding the platform this Big Billion Days. It is aiming to make over 30 million deliveries through kirana delivery partners this festive season. Flipkart had reported over 55 per cent growth in its new seller count during the sale from the year-ago period for its B2C marketplace. Moreover, artisans and weavers from the Flipkart Samarth programme saw a 6X growth from last year’s sale, according to the company.