E-commerce in India: A tremendous opportunity that is still mostly untapped

Abstract

E-commerce in India is set to explode; some consider that the sector may grow five to seven times over the next five years. In October 2012, Indian’s e-commerce was worth 2.3 U.S billion dollars. In comparison to the US or China, e-commerce in India is still at the very beginning. According to Technopark a retail consultancy firm, it could reach 32 U.S billion dollar by 2020. Several factors may lead to its development such as demography, the potential internet user base, and the market penetration of smartphones or the physical retail limitations in many regions. There is still an important untapped space in e-commerce. How could this potential be made bear fruit?. Even with a favorable ecosystem, the path to success is not clearly defined in India and several competitors are already trying to win the market. So far e-commerce companies have not succeeded in being profitable; they are running loss making business models by selling below the purchase price. The aim of this “last man standing strategy” is to affirm itself as the leading company. However, those companies have to define the most reliable economic model in the long run to be able to seize the growth potential. What business model could be the key to success?. Ecommerce market is about to boom in India and companies are already struggling to win a dominant position. One key point may be the users of mobile phones. Some are already talking about “A mobile commerce revolution” as titled by Forbes in June 2015 and one strategy to succeed may be a mobile app-only strategy. How to integrate what some call “m-commerce” in the company strategy?.