Ecommerce companies Flipkart, Amazon log out of deep discounts

Vrushali Patil 17 May, 2019

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Ecommerce companies Flipkart, Amazon log out of deep discounts

Online marketplaces treading cautiously after February tweak in ecommerce policy.

KOLKATA: Deep discounts offered on India’s two largest ecommerce marketplaces, Walmart-owned Flipkart and Amazon, have vanished for over three months now, said executives from leading consumer companies.

Nothing is sold below cost price anymore, they said, though discounts may be more on private label products owned by the marketplaces, which are treading cautiously after the revised foreign investment policy for ecommerce came into effect in February.

The two marketplaces have decided to take it slow, at least until the next government takes charge, hoping to fend off the offline trade lobby, which is a massive vote bank and has been lobbying with the government and political parties against deep discounts online, said four executives of leading companies.

Some executives said it’s a sign that the online marketplaces are maturing and targeting profitability.

The executives from consumer electronics, mobile phone, fashion and lifestyle companies said the quantum of online discounts has been scaled down by 10-30% between February and mid-May as compared to the same period last year.

ECOMM COS EYEING PROFITABILITY
The categories account for about 80% of the total ecommerce business in India. The level of discounts has come down even though both Amazon and Flipkart, flush with funds, periodically run promotional sales, they said.

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