ADverb & CARKHANA.com – Caselet I
E-commerce in India is ubiquitous now. Everything from books to tablets to baby products is being sold online. Post-last year's hype and this financial year's much-needed consolidation, some key business models have emerged in the market and these are being carefully watched by the insiders as well as external stakeholders.
Based on the online retail spectrum, there are 2 key models (in terms of product offerings and interface with value chain) –
1.
Hyper Stores/ Multi-category retail players like Flipkart.com, Futurebazaar.com, Tradus.in, Snapdeal.com and others who after building dominance in one category have expanded to multiple categories. Sometimes this has been on the expense of having categories which have no relevance to each other (example : sports and baby products). While some clearly visualize to be online mega stores, others are just trying to expand product catalogue and capture market share.
2.
The other model which has surfaced is more inclined towards category domination and leadership. Herein, an E-commerce firm will spend all its energies in increasing its depth in one industry segment (like fashion, baby care, automotive, sports) and only add products which go in sync with the main theme. Firms like Myntra.com (fashion), Firstcry (baby) and others are the few popular examples in this category of business model.
Numbers Speak louder than words:
Let’s check what numbers indicate regarding popular websites belonging to above mentioned business models:
Flipkart (Multi – category) : “We will close 2011-2012 with over $100 million in revenue. By 2015, we want to clock in $1billion, but looking at present trends, we may be able to do it sooner,” states Binny, Flipkart's COO
Myntra (Single - Category) : The following infographic talks about the Myntra growth Strory
Apart from important numbers, it is significant to understand that while it is easy for bigger E-commerce firms to appoint category managers and enter any new domain easily, it takes far more conviction and passion to turn one category and solve the critical problems that industry faces and avail the opportunity online
Both models offer their advantages and limitations and it is upto the customers to take the final call. We are still a long time away from the end-call and this is an appropriate time to answer the burning queries:
Note to the teams : This material is not exhaustive, teams are advised to understand the depth of the mentioned problem, and wherever possible back their arguments with reliable data.The two questions for discussion will be shared at 10 pm tonight. Each question is of 15 mins duration (may be extended at discretion of the Judging Panel)