<ul><li>Amazon is reportedly looking to open 100 kiosks in India by the end of 2019. </li><li>The company has previously experimented with the concept in 2017 when it first opened a kiosk at Bengaluru. </li><li>The move is in contrast with its recent decision to shutdown over 80 pop up stores in the US. </li></ul>E-commerce giant, Amazon is reportedly planning to expand its footprint of offline kiosks in India, opening over 100 such small-format stores that will be located inside malls by the end of 2019. The company has already started looking for 70-80 square foot space in malls, Economic Times <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/retail/offline-push-amazon-plans-100-mall-kiosks/articleshow/68571696.cms">reported</a> citing sources. These kiosks typically sell devices such as the Kindle ebook reader, the Echo speaker and the Fire TV dongle. The company is also hoping to get a push for its entry into brick-and-mortar stores in India with this move. Amazon started experimenting with kiosks in India when it opened its first retail store in Bengaluru in May 2017. It then introduced four more stores — two in Bengaluru, one in Mumbai, one in Ahmedabad. According to the report , the kiosks will be operated by a third party. In 2017, Amazon received the Indian government’s approval to sell locally-produced and packaged items through its online as well as offline channels. Additionally, Amazon is also planning to venture into brick-and-mortar stores in India similar to that in the US. Currently, Amazon sells food items in India through its website amazon.in. The move to open additional kiosks is in contrast with Amazon’s recent decision to close over 80 pop-up stores in the US as part of its broader retail strategy. Several players in India are betting big on offline expansion including Google and Zivame . Google introduced more than a dozen stores in India including High Street Phoenix in Mumbai and Select Citywalk, Promenade, Mall of India in the Delhi-National Capital Region to showcase its Pixel 2 phones and to let consumers know its features. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/amazon-india-finds-way-around-new-e-commerce-rules-for-cloudtail-and-appario/articleshow/67831376.cms">Amazon may have found a way around India’s new e-commerce rules</a>

Amazon plans to open over 100 kiosks across malls in India: Report

Amazon has launched an updated version of its popular Fire TV Stick 4K called the Fire TV Stick 4K Max. The <keyword id="2572043" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon-Fire-TV-Stick" source="Orion">Amazon Fire TV Stick</keyword> 4K Max is up for pre-order starting from ₹6,499. One can pre-order it from the <keyword id="6354743" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="amazon-india" source="Orion">Amazon India</keyword> website as well as Amazon kiosks in select malls and will begin shipping to customers from October 7, 2021. The Fire TV Stick 4K Max supports 4K UHD, HDR and HDR10+ streaming, Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos for cinematic experience. It features the latest <keyword id="6929933" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Alexa-Voice-Remote" source="Orion">Alexa Voice Remote</keyword> to easily search for their desired content, control playback, manage the smart home devices and more. It comes with a new quad-core 1.8GHz MediaTek MT8696 processer with 750MHz IMG GE8300 that is 40 per cent more powerful than the predecessor. It has 2GB of RAM, 8GB of storage and is the first <keyword id="2180538" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="amazon-fire-tv" source="Orion">Amazon Fire TV</keyword> stick with Wi-Fi 6 support, thanks to MT7921LS chip. The remote features additional shortcut buttons for popular apps, such as Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, depending upon your region. The Fire TV Stick 4K Max also supports the live view picture-in-picture feature from the Fire TV Cube. One can also wirelessly connect <keyword id="8163122" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="echo-studio" source="Orion">Echo Studio</keyword> or a pair of Echo (4th Gen) smart speakers to the Fire TV Stick 4K Max as well (just like the Fire TV Omni and 4-Series). SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/jiophone-next-smartphone-launch-delayed-until-diwali-due-to-chip-shortage/articleshow/86087153.cms">JioPhone Next launch delayed until Diwali due to chip shortage</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/google-workspace-apps-like-gmail-docs-sheets-and-others-get-a-material-you-design-makeover/articleshow/86087626.cms">Google Workspace apps like Gmail, Docs, Sheets and others get a Material You design makeover</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/groww-and-zerodha-to-battle-it-out-in-mutual-fund-business/articleshow/86087763.cms">Groww and Zerodha to battle it out in mutual fund business after wooing India’s youngsters into stock market investing</a>

Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max with Wi-Fi 6, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision launches in India at ₹6,499

New Delhi, Apr 27 () E-commerce giant Amazon India on Monday said it has strengthened its partnership with the Indian Railways and has ramped up its operations to 55 lanes in a bid to enable faster deliveries to customers amid the nationwide lockdown. Last year, Amazon India had partnered with Indian Railways for inter-city transportation of e-commerce packages on 13 lanes, and had also set up pickup kiosks for customers in Kolkata and Mumbai. Amazon India will transport consignments via rail across the country and is leveraging the 'COVID-19 Parcel Special Trains' introduced by the Indian Railways to ramp up its operations to 55 lanes during the lockdown period, it said in a statement. Indian Railways with the support of the Railway Board and the zones across Western, Central, Northern, Eastern, South Central, Southern, South Eastern, North East Frontier, North Western and South Western have created a proactive solution to provide support for transportation during lockdown. "This enhanced network will enable sellers in Amazon India's network to ship their products across the country and keep their businesses running, thereby, allowing people to access a more diverse selection of essential products," the statement said. Amazon India Director (Amazon Transportation Services) Abhinav Singh said with the support of COVID-19 Parcel Special trains introduced by the Indian Railways, the company is confident it can further fulfil customer orders with enhanced speed and capacity. "We are grateful for this timely decision by the Indian Railways to offer freight movement solutions during these challenging times," he added. Under the lockdown - scheduled to end on May 3, e-commerce companies have been allowed to sell only essential items like grocery, healthcare and pharmaceutical products. The players and industry associations have been urging the government to expand the list of essentials to include 'work from home' and 'study from home' products. SR SHWSHW

Amazon India strengthens partnership with Railways for faster deliveries amid lockdown

<ul><li><keyword id="6354743" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon-India">Amazon India</keyword> is pushing for an offline presence in India where only one-third of the population has access to the internet. </li><li>The company is reportedly making its payments services available in brick-and-mortar stores like Shoppers Stop. </li><li>It’s also looking to open up more Amazon Kiosks in locations around the country.</li></ul> Amazon in no stranger to Indian market, in fact it’s the largest e-commerce platform in India. But, after seven years of pulling people online, the e-tailer is reaching out them by going offline. Amazon India is expanding by marking an entry in brick-and-mortar stores as well making its payments service, <keyword id="4009819" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon-Pay">Amazon Pay</keyword>, available in neighbourhood outlets. Amazon Pay — based on India’s unified payments interface (UPI) — is already operational at Shoppers Stop, a department store chain with 83 stores across the country. And, according to sources the company also has plans to make the same service available in one of India’s supermarket chains, More, later this year according to a <a href="https://www.livemint.com/companies/news/amazon-pay-makes-an-offline-push-with-scan-and-pay-service-1553651647685.html">report</a> by LiveMint. It’s not that these stores are the largest in India, but because Amazon has stake in both establishments. In fact, five Shoppers Stop outlets were <a href="https://www.financialexpress.com/industry/revealed-why-shoppers-stop-is-shutting-more-stores/1121881/">shut down</a> in 2018 and more were ‘re-sized’ to recuperate from losses. 
 <div type="ExtQuote" text="“We have begun introducing Amazon smile code, a new way for our customers to shop and pay at physical stores like Shoppers Stop, among others.&quot;" auname="Amazon spokesperson"></div>



 Amazon kiosks, on the other hand, have been around since 2017 with four operational outlets so far — two in Karnataka, one in Mumbai and one in Ahmedabad. But in 2019, the Jeff Bezos enterprise has aggressive <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/amazon-plans-to-open-over-100-kiosks-across-malls-in-india-report/articleshow/68579967.cms">plans</a> to expand by opening more than 100 more counters by the end of the year. Why offline matters Digital wallets like Paytm have become a popular way to make transactions at India’s brick-and-mortar retail stores. Even though internet penetration in India finally <a href="https://imrbint.com/site/reports/i-cube">crossed</a> the half a billion mark in 2018 that’s only about one-third of the total population. In fact, online transactions only account for 10% of overall transactions in the country. Paytm, a homegrown payments platform that’s been expanding its offline presence through QR codes at merchant outlets, <a href="https://www.medianama.com/2018/09/223-paytm-5m-offline-merchants-upi/">claims</a> that more than 40% of its recorded transactions are offline. In fact, the volume of unified payments interface (UPI) — the payment tools that allows for digital payment transactions — transactions have grown to account for 9% of all retail payments within two years of inception, according to a <a href="http://image-src.bcg.com/Images/BCG-Global-Payments-2018-Oct-2018_tcm9-205095.pdf">report</a> by BCG. The Amazon Pay UPI was only launched a little over a month ago. Not only does it give Amazon the opportunity to expand online, but also keeps users under its umbrella should they choose to shop on external merchant websites. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/amazon-plans-to-open-over-100-kiosks-across-malls-in-india-report/articleshow/68579967.cms">Amazon plans to open over 100 kiosks across malls in India: Report</a>

After 7 years in India, Amazon has finally learnt that there is more money offline

<ul><li><keyword id="18635" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon">Amazon</keyword> India has partnered with <keyword id="6355455" type="DEFINITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="indian-railways">Indian Railways</keyword> to launch pick up kiosks in <keyword id="6358070" type="DEFINITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="mumbai">Mumbai</keyword>.</li><li>The CSTM, Thane, Dadar and Kalyan stations will see the pilot run of the project. </li><li>Amazon recently opened its largest campus in Hyderabad. The 9.5 acre campus will house 15,000 employees.</li></ul>Amazon India partnered with the Indian Railways to set up pick up kiosks at Mumbai’s local railway stations. This plan will be piloted in stations like CSTM, Thane, Dadar and Kalyan. Through these pick up kiosks, customers can pick up their couriers on-the-go. “As a customer-obsessed company, we are constantly leveraging our resources and technology to build initiatives which are grounded in customer convenience. The suburban railway network forms the backbone of public transportation in Mumbai,” said Prakash Rochlani, Director – Last Mile Transportation, Amazon India. While shopping, customers can select a pick up point at the checkout page. Amazon has been ramping up its game in India. It recently opened its largest campus in Hyderabad. The 9.5 acre campus will house 15,000 employees. Across the country, Amazon now has more than 60 fulfillment centers with over 20 million cubic feet storage space.

Mumbaikars can now pick up their Amazon packages on the way to work from a suburban railway station

<img class="gwt-Image" src="/photo/53737802.cms" /> 
While logistics is turning out to be one of the biggest challenges for <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=e-commerce&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">e-commerce</a> companies across the country, a Bengaluru-based <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=e-commerce&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">e-commerce</a> <keyword id="138263" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="startup">startup</keyword> is trying hard to tap into the rural customer base. 
 Meet <keyword id="2919909" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="StoreKing">StoreKing</keyword>. Founded by <keyword id="2920244" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Sridhar-Gundaiah">Sridhar Gundaiah</keyword> in 2012, the company has harnessed the power of vernacular languages to introduce <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=e-commerce&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">e-commerce</a> to over a million villagers in the last three years. 
 
How it works: 
StoreKing approaches small kirana shops to mobile recharge outlets in villages. The retailer has to pay less than Rs 10,000 to install the StoreKing kiosk in their shop. These tablets come with the pre-installed company app. It is currently available in Tamil, Telegu, Goan, Kannada and Malayalam. 
 
Once installed, the villagers just have to select the category, the product of their choice and click on ‘buy’. The shopkeepers assist shoppers, and in return earn around 10% commission on each sale. 
 
Once the online order is placed, the customer pays the shopkeeper and receives a bill. A confirmation message is sent immediately on the customer’s mobile. The product is delivered to the shop the very next day, and the customer collects it. 
 
Operations: 
StoreKing has its warehouse in <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Bengaluru&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Bengaluru</a>, and promises to deliver all items within 48 hours. It uses the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=FMCG+distribution&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">FMCG distribution</a> channel to deliver goods. The minimum order requirement is Rs 500. 
 
Over 17,000 rural shops across west and south India are connected with StoreKing, with South India alone accounting for 4,500 kiosks. 
The startup plans to expand its operations to the rest of the country soon. 
 
Expansion Plans: 
The company has raised multiple rounds of funding to the tune of around $6 million from a Luxembourg-based VC firm called Mangrove Capital Partners. It hasn’t raised any money since 2014. 
 “I hope to reach 500 million people by the end of the next couple of years because I know there is no way a <keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="40" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword> or an <keyword id="18635" type="CITY" weightage="40" keywordseo="Amazon">Amazon</keyword> can reach the interiors like we can,” Sridhar said in an interview. 
 
The startup is looking to expand to Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh in the next couple of months. 
 
Image Credit: Indiatimes

This startup is helping Amazon and ShopClues reach a million Indian villagers

<ul><li>LinkedIn ranked companies that are chased by Indians to work with and stay for longer once onboard — and Flipkart tops the list. </li><li>The report assessed members on four parameters — interest in the company, engagement with the company’s employees, job demand and employee retention. </li><li>Internet companies including Amazon, Zomato, Ola and Alphabet have been dominating the top spots.</li></ul>Technology and Internet companies continue to dominate the top places to work in India, according to the latest annual Linkedin survey ranking Indian companies. While e-commerce giant Flipkart jumped to the first position from second last year, several other homegrown giants — Zomato, Swiggy and Freshworks — featured prominently among the top 25 companies preferred by Indian professionals.. Given that more millennials and even GenZ are now joining the workforce, Indian companies appear to be paying increasing attention to work culture in addition to offering better wages and exposure to the most sought-after skills. The report analysed over 610 million LinkedIn members, gauging job seekers’ interest in the company, employee engagement, job demands, and employee retention. Here are the top 25 companies <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/top-companies-2019-where-india-wants-work-now-editors-india-/?published=t">ranked</a> by the company. 1. Flipkart (Walmart) Walmart-owned e-commerce company Flipkart gave rise to many millionaires after its acquisition. The e-commerce giant, which has a headcount of over 13,000 employees in India, has been ranked first by job seekers. In fact, according to a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/in-india-flipkart-tops-the-fairness-quotient-for-gig-economy-workers-report/articleshow/68593359.cms">recent report on gig economy platforms</a>, in terms of working conditions, Flipkart topped the charts. 2. Amazon Even as the new e-commerce norms come into effect in India, global retail giant Amazon, has still been on a hiring spree in India with nearly 1,950 job postings, as on April 2. Presently, the company has 50,000 employees in India. It competes neck and neck with rival Flipkart, and has recently made a foray into offline segment as well, setting up <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/amazon-plans-to-open-over-100-kiosks-across-malls-in-india-report/articleshow/68579967.cms">kiosks in malls</a>. 3. OYO Hotel chain Oyo has been diversifying beyond its flagship hospitality business. Its latest acquisition of Innov8 mark its entry into the food market and co-working space. The company is also in talks to acquire FreshMenu. As a long term goal, the hotel chain is aiming to overtake Marriott, five years down the line. It has 7,000 employees in India, according to LinkedIn. 4. One97 Communications (Paytm) One97 Communications, the parent company of Paytm, ranks fourth on the list. It boasts of flexible and informal work culture, and has apparently removed restrictions on blocking calendars, encouraging impromptu meetings. 5. Uber With a more sustainable approach, Uber aims to put 1 million green cars on Indian roads by 2022.The ride-hailing firm Uber has a headcount of 1,700 employees. The company is reportedly planning to double the new hires in the products and engineering domain. 6. Swiggy Food aggregator Swiggy, a recent entrant to India’s unicorn club, has been hiring in the areas of sales, operations and business development. The company, which has 6,000 people onboard in India presently, is also reportedly planning to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/swiggy-in-talks-to-acquire-ubereats-india-operations/articleshow/68110377.cms">diversify</a>. 7. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) India’s largest IT services company, TCS, has grown four-fold since 2007. The company has been increasingly hiring fresh graduates via <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/wipro-campus-placements-to-double/articleshow/67719782.cms">campus placements</a>, and added nearly 27,000 employees last year. 8. Zomato The food-tech unicorn, which claims to cater nearly 21 million monthly orders, is also a top employer. Its hiring has focused primarily on skills including AutoCAD, employee engagement and web content writing. 9. Alphabet (Google) Alphabet, the parent company of Google, has gravitated back to elite campus hires after two consecutive non-hiring years. The company is reportedly actively looking for engineering, machine learning, algorithms and media &amp; communication candidates. 10. Reliance Industries With Jio sweeping the Internet market and disrupting the telecom space in India, Reliance Industries has claimed the 10th position. Among its employee perks is a 24*7 assistance to an employee’s family in case of emergencies like road accidents and fire. 11. EY The company has a strength of 42,000 in India. Focussing on digital transformation, the company plans to hire 2,000 new professionals across AI, blockchain and analytics domain. 12. Adobe To keep its employees happy, the company lets its employees set aside 25% of their earned salary for stock purchase at discounted rates twice in a year. 13. <keyword id="136162" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Boston-Consulting-Group">Boston Consulting Group</keyword> (BCG) With more people interested in offshore placements, this comes as a benefit to its employees, the company offers over 25% to work outside their native country at least once a year. Recently, the company hired fresh <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/accenture-bcg-dominate-campus-placements-at-business-schools-in-india/articleshow/68045145.cms">MBA graduates</a> from India’s elite colleges — including IIMs. 14. YES Bank As it plans to expand its footprint in India over the next two years, the company is aggressively looking to hire PDS beneficiaries, along with automating the loan approvals to ease the process. 15. IBM The company has a headcount of over 100,000 in India with maximum hires taking place in the engineering, Information Technology and Consulting domain. The company is also considering cascading style sheets (CSS), HTML, jQuery skills. 16. Daimler AG Breaking the monotony, the automotive company plans to come up with 52 new products in 2019. The fastest-growing skills in the company are MySQL, Javascript and Python. 17. Freshworks Here’s a company that has an eye for alternate talent at work. The company, for instance, is open for engineering hires who are social or full time musicians. Most of the new hires in the company have been from sales, engineering and product management. 18. Accenture Accenture has been one of the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/accenture-bcg-dominate-campus-placements-at-business-schools-in-india/articleshow/68045145.cms">top employers</a> in the engineering domain. To retain talent, the company allows sabbaticals providing them with the opportunity for higher education. Also, employee benefits for women include an hour off during workdays to look after their children below the age of 15 years. 19. Ola The cab aggregator is focussing on bringing green cars to the Indian market. Most of the new hires in the company are for engineering, operations and business development skills. However, being a cab service provider, the company has seen demand for skills including automotive design. 20. ICICI Bank Breaking the stereotypes, India’s second largest private bank looks to cut hierarchy system to boost accountability and efficiency in the bank. Digital marketing and engineering have emerged as top skills. 21. PwC India Management consulting firm, PwC India, the company welcomes employees from not just accounts and taxation background but diverse fields such as journalists, environmentalists and design thinkers among others. 22. KPMG India One of the largest accounting firms in India, KPMG has been offering overseas assignments to nearly 3,000 employees across 100 countries in order to keep the attrition rate minimum. Accounting and consulting have been the most in-demand skills for the company while looking to hire new talent. 23. Larsen &amp; Toubro Keeping the right gender balance, the engineering conglomerate claims to have male female remuneration ratio at 1:1. The construction company has also been hiring skills such as Python coding and financial services. 24. Oracle India is Oracle’s sixth largest market in data management space. The company is looking to hire IT and engineering skills, as it plans to open its first data centre in India. 25. Qualcomm As the company eyes Indian markets, it will create 10,000 jobs in the country by establishing its largest facility outside the US, according to the <keyword id="4894774" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="linkedin-report">LinkedIn report</keyword>.

Here are the 25 most popular workplaces in India, according to LinkedIn

<ul><li>Books worth ₹60 lakh were found either torn or wet all over <keyword id="403902" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="College-Street">College Street</keyword>, Asia’s largest book market, as per current estimates. </li><li>A number of booksellers were seen picking up the damaged books from the flooded street in Kolkata after <keyword id="8409001" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="cyclone-amphan">cyclone Amphan</keyword> destroyed the market. </li><li>Many of the booksellers have decided to open a grocery shop after the lockdown ends. </li></ul>Kolkata’s historic College Street, Asia’s largest book market, was flooded with muddy water and battered books for over a day after an extremely severe cyclone Amphan passed through the city on May 20. More than 5,000 trees, along with a few hundred electric posts, traffic signals and police kiosks have been uprooted in and around Kolkata. The death toll due to cyclone Amphan in West Bengal has risen to 77 as authorities are busy restoring the normal life thrown out of gear by the region's worst weather disasters. Here is the look at what’s left of College Street, also known as Boi Choi, in Kolkata: Boi Para, popularly known as College Street, is a long 1.5 kilometre market with a huge collection of books. Books worth ₹60 lakh were found either torn or wet on the street as per current <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/amphan-ravages-college-street-as-heartbreaking-pictures-of-devastation-emerge/articleshow/75876506.cms">estimates reported Times of India.</a> <div type="image" title="EYi9ZltXsAAHGdj" msid="75892228" hostid="261"></div>A number of booksellers were seen picking up the damaged wet books from the flooded College Street after cyclone Amphan destroyed the market. They intend to dry the books and sell them at a second-hand price. <div type="image" title="EYi9ZDFWkAIPvGw" msid="75892262" hostid="261"></div> Avi Sarkar, <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/amphan-ravages-college-street-as-heartbreaking-pictures-of-devastation-emerge/articleshow/75876506.cms">who sells Boi Choi books online</a>, said many small shops lost their roofs and their books were floating in street water — leaving publishers devastated. <div type="twitter" handle="aniketmishra299" handlename="Aniket Mishra" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/980719875663437825/O6cL5j6Z_normal.jpg" favoritecount="254" retweetcount="87" status="This broke my heart - aftermath of the cyclone Amphan on the book market in College Street :/ https://t.co/I5NeGnOMJq" createdat="1590070875000" id="1263474943033049094"></div> These booksellers were already distressed as shops were closed for nearly two months amid the nationwide coronavirus lockdown. Many booksellers from Boi Choi have now decided to open a grocery shop instead of bookstores, after the lockdown ends. <div type="image" title="cf25b93c341866a15a518f867e28b84c" msid="75892477" hostid="261"></div> SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/amazon-india-hiring-50000-jobs-available-for-delivery-guys/articleshow/75888254.cms">Amazon India has opened up 50,000 ‘seasonal’ jobs for the post-lockdown surge in e-commerce demand</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/checkout-the-datesheet-for-isc-class-12th-and-icse-class-10th-exams-from-july-1/articleshow/75890632.cms">ICSE class 10th and ISC class 12th exam dates announced — students have to wear masks and carry sanitizers for the tests</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/personal-finance/news/interest-payments-on-home-loans-car-loans-and-others-extended-by-another-three-months-by-rbi/articleshow/75884387.cms">No EMI payments for six months as RBI extends moratorium on loans repayments till August 31</a>

Cyclone Amphan wipes out Asia’s largest book market, College Street, in Kolkata

<ul><li>Their omnichannel strategy has worked well with close to 40% revenue coming in indirectly from their offline studios, reveals top <keyword id="864887" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pepperfry">Pepperfry</keyword> executive. </li><li>In an exclusive chat with Business Insider, Pepperfry says the company will increase the number Pepperfry Studio locations to over 100.</li><li>Pepperfry has announced the launch of its Snooze Studios which will sell sleep accessories like mattresses. </li><li>The startup aims to rake in a revenue ₹20 billion by the financial year 2021 through its in-house brands alone.</li></ul>In the last eight years of its existence, Pepperfry has grown to be one of the success stories of India’s <keyword id="35621" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="e-commerce">e-commerce</keyword> boom but the startup’s Vice President and Head of Omnichannel expansion, Mihir Kulkarni, had an interesting revelation to make in an exclusive interview with Business Insider – the sales had doubled after they opened physical ‘experience’ stores. “In every new catchment that we have opened up the offline studio, the city’s sales have grown by 90-100%. We now plan to take our store count up to 100 by the end of the fiscal year,” said Kulkarni. Their omnichannel strategy has paid off. Pepperfry launched its first studio in 2014. Since then, they expanded it to 65 studios across 28 cities. “While we don’t sell directly through our offline studios, they contribute significantly to our sales. Close to 40% of our overall turnover comes from the online bookings made at these studios,” said Kulkarni. This is a telling sign of the nature of evolution of the much-celebrated boom in Indian e-commerce. Other startups like Craftsvilla, Faballey and more recently Popxo have also recently launched offline stores to further grow their business. Amazon which had although pulled the plug on its global mall pop-up stores, didn’t give up on offline retail. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/Amazon-quietly-launched-a-new-store-in-malls-after-pulling-the-plug-on-its-pop-up-stores/articleshow/69487379.cms">Instead</a> it launched ‘Presented by Amazon’ a range of kiosks. Pepperfry is definitely doubling down on its offline efforts but it is also looking to keep its capital investment low. It plans to expand its presence in Tier-II cities in India but would rather have more franchisees than owned stores. “Currently, out of the 65 stores, 12 are through the franchise model. We expect the number to go up to 25 by the end of the year,” said Kulkarni. The sleep market Beyond physical stores, Pepperfry is also betting big on in-house brands particularly in, what Kulkarni likes to call, the ‘sleep’ market -- mattresses, bedsheets, pillows, and more. Pepperfry is pushing these new products through its in-house brand, Clouddio. The startup aims to rake in revenues to the tune of ₹20 billion by 2020-21 through in-house brands alone. In 2017-18, Pepperfry had announced a gross merchandise volume of ₹15 billion. And, over half of its current revenue comes from in-house brands. The e-retailer also announced the launch of Pepperfry Snooze Studios – its line of products for the sleep market – within its <keyword id="3437283" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="studio-pepperfry">Studio Pepperfry</keyword>. Sleep smart The sleep market is currently valued at $2.5 billion in India and is growing at 10%. Pepperfry is also experimenting with IOT-enabled products for this market– from beds that have an in-builtalarm clocks to ones that monitor sleep patterns. These products could hit the market in a few years. “The sector is highly unorganised and in terms of consumer experience. It is a broken category. That is why we want to crack open the market with our successful omnichannel strategy,” said Kulkarni. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/paytm-clocks-50-billion-through-5-5-billion-transactions/articleshow/69670592.cms">Paytm’s year in a review – Billions, profits and frauds</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/naukri-jobs-is-using-artificial-intelligence-to-take-on-linkedin/articleshow/69751271.cms">An Indian internet company older than Google is using Artificial Intelligence to reinvent itself</a>

EXCLUSIVE: An online furniture retailer in India saw its sales double after it opened physical 'experience' stores

<ul><li>Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2024 was held in the beautiful Spanish city of Barcelona last month.</li><li>Business Insider India brought exciting visuals and updates from the ground zero throughout the event.</li><li>In case you missed it, here is a collective summary of our top five videos from the event to watch and marvel at the advancements in the tech world! </li></ul>As tech enthusiasts, we often wonder what the future may hold for the cool gadgets that have penetrated every bit of our daily lives. A glimpse into this future of consumer technology is offered by the big 4 events throughout the year — Consumer Electronic Show (CES) in January, Mobile World Congress (MWC) in February, WorldWide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June, and finally Future Battery in Berlin towards November. This year, Business Insider India was present in Barcelona to cover the Mobile World Congress 2024 from the ground. We covered 8 halls throughout the length and breadth of this mega-conference to bring our audience a taste of the emerging tech space, most of which was just at the conceptual stage. While our video coverage is present on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/businessinsiderin/">our social feed</a>, here is a quick recap summary of my observations and highlights from the conference. Top picks from MWC 2024 <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C31mR3evCmC/">Motorola Adaptive Display</a> The Motorola podium at the Lenovo booth in Hall 3 was a hot spot. The brand showcased 2 innovative products that took the internet by storm. Adaptive display technology, a bendable smartphone with a POLED screen. A concept right now, you can bend it, wrap it around your wrist and keep it on a table like a clock. It's made possible with the help of a back panel encompassing a special battery case in which you can change its orientation. <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C31mR3evCmC/">Check out the viral video now</a>! <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C3z1QwlPIkT/">Xiaomi SU7 Max</a> Xiaomi’s claim to fame this year was the SU7 Max on display at MWC. The Electric Vehicle from the renowned smartphone brand boasting a 600KM range and a 0-100 kmph pick-up time of 2 seconds, made headlines immediately. The EV running on Xiaomis HyperOS is a smartphone brand's first serious attempt at pivoting to an integrated auto and tech product. <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C32FqRGLnUO/">Humane AI Pin</a> Humane AI’s kiosk at the Qualcomm booth gained popularity over time after day 1. A favourable form factor for bringing AI to our everyday lives, this AI pin is extremely advanced. Put it on like a name tag, and then you can talk to it. Running on Chat GPT, the product gives you answers in real-time. The device comes with a camera, projector and a speaker built-in. Learn more about it from our video. <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C35F4rQrD0w/">OnePlus 12R Genshin Impact</a> OnePlus made headlines throughout the MWC, even though the brand didn’t have a booth inside the arena. Launching two very solid products, the <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C30KF7tP5u-/">OnePlus Watch 2</a> and the Genshin Impact edition for the 12R. As we expect from the brand, the integration with Genshin impact was not just vanity. The device gets a new exclusive colour, a completely new UI along with audio profiles. The exclusive Genshin impact packaging comes with collector pins, an L-shaped cable and display items as well. Moreover, the entire box can be converted into a display piece. <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C37SpIVLDsO/">Lenovo Transparent Laptop</a> Circling back to the Lenovo booth, the transparent laptop was a star attraction. In a fully working condition, the laptop performed far beyond my expectations. You could play videos on it, work on spreadsheets and even type on it. The laptop could also identify items kept behind it, or in frame. For more informative content we highly recommend heading to our <a href="https://www.instagram.com/businessinsiderin/reels/">social media</a> feed. And, if you want to interact with us live, catch us on the <a href="https://www.amazon.in/live/channel/b5229d13-e18e-4f3b-9c1d-2f2233d41cd1">Amazon India shopping app</a> every Saturday at 10 PM. Make sure to subscribe to us there.

Mobile World Congress: A quick recap of the future of consumer tech as seen in MWC, Barcelona

<ul><li>In its recent earnings report, Reliance said that <keyword id="3421090" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ajio">AJIO</keyword> has scaled new highs with 4x growth in orders from pre-COVID levels.</li><li>AJIO’s latest numbers show that it’s levelling up to Myntra while moving fast ahead of other competitors like Tata Cliq, Snapdeal and Koovs.</li><li>However, Flipkart and Myntra continue to hold 60% market share in online fashion retail, according to a Bank of America report.</li><li>Currently, fashion and lifestyle account for just 9% of the total retail sales of Reliance.</li></ul>In April 2016, at the Lakme Fashion Week, <keyword id="3820" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mukesh-Ambani">Mukesh Ambani</keyword>’s Reliance announced its big foray into fashion e-commerce with AJIO.com. The segment that has been crowded by the likes of Flipkart, Myntra (along with Jabong back then), Amazon, and others, left little room for AJIO to outshine the others. But the rise of e-commerce, especially as it spreads into rural India has brought about changes in the fashion e-commerce landscape. AJIO, which up until a year ago, wasn’t even counted among the frontrunners is scripting a story of resurgence now. AJIO’s fast-tracked growth “AJIO scaled new highs with 4x growth in orders from pre-COVID levels. Its quarterly revenue run rate is now equivalent to full last year’s revenue,” said Reliance during its earnings results on October 30. AJIO’s latest numbers show that it’s levelling up to Myntra while moving fast ahead of other competitors like Tata Cliq, Snapdeal and Koovs. While AJIO’s website visits are higher than Myntra, it lags behind in app downloads and users. <div type="image" title="Group 2" msid="78997632" hostid="261"></div> <div type="image" title="Group 2 copy" msid="78997646" hostid="261"></div> AJIO’s growth can be seen during lockdown when it began to see a spike in the number of app downloads. <div type="image" title="ajio vs myntra downloads" msid="78996631" hostid="261"></div> What’s working for AJIO Reliance is aggressively pushing ahead with its retail and e-commerce ambitions, and fashion e-commerce is set to play a substantial role. Currently, fashion and lifestyle account for just 9% of the total retail sales of Reliance. Analysts at Goldman Sachs believe that within e-commerce, RIL’s online GMV will reach $35 billion in FY25E with a 31% market share. And for that, Reliance is focusing on grocery and apparel segments with JioMart and AJIO. “RIL’s retail business outperformed peers last quarter and we expect this trend to continue given its omni channel offering driving market share wins,” said the Goldman Sachs report specifically pointing out the download trends of both JioMart and AJIO. <div type="image" title="reliance revenue chart." msid="78996641" hostid="261"></div> For AJIO’s growth, Reliance has opted for the omnichannel approach where the e-commerce site is riding on the inventory of Reliance Trends. “AJIO helps strengthen RIL’s O2O (offline-to-online) capabilities through in-store couponing, aisle kiosks. It does direct deliveries from 350 Trends and 70 Trends Footwear stores,” said the report by Bank of America. The platform has also enabled facilities like ‘Drop at Store with Cash Refund’ and ‘Pick at Store’ while also integrating the endless aisle kiosks where customers can even browse and order products that aren’t currently available in the store. With the deep pockets of Reliance, AJIO has also been able to offer great discounts while also making way for exclusive marketing strategies like the ‘Sneakerhood sale’ on AJIO. The platform has also focused on bringing on board luxury brands. “It offers over 2,50,000 styles of curated collections across its own brand and 1,400+ national and international brands,” said Reliance’s annual report. Resurgence in Indian e-commerce Indian e-commerce has seen multiple stories of resurgence with a focussed approach with the most popular one being that of Snapdeal, which has bounced back and how, to be India’s third largest e-commerce platform while also solidifying its presence in Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets. However, when it comes to the fashion category, AJIO’s growth will still see hurdles especially as it faces tough competition from the bigwigs like Flipkart and Myntra. “While AJIO is gaining traction, we believe competition is stiff in the online fashion market with Flipkart’s Myntra/Jabong controlling 60%+ of the market,” believe analysts at Bank of America. But the potential remains immense – According to McKinsey’s State of Fashion 2020 report, the Indian clothing market will be worth $53.7 billion in 2020, making it the sixth largest globally. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/reliance-stock-tanks-over-7-post-earnings-to-lowest-in-3-months-heres-what-brokerages-are-saying/articleshow/78996203.cms">Reliance stock tanks over 7% post earnings to lowest in 3 months — here's what brokerages are saying</a>

Reliance-backed AJIO is riding the Indian e-commerce wave — poses tough competition to Myntra

<ul><li>Sundarban honey has high demand for its nutritional value and purity.</li><li>It is, however, called <keyword id="11960433" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Blood-honey" source="Orion">blood honey</keyword> for the risks involved in collection as every year people die venturing into the forests to collect honey.</li><li>There are now multiple local organisations like Bonphool, Dhenki and Sundarini Naturals that are investing in safer procedures to collect honey and growing yearly with the increase in demand.</li></ul><keyword id="1361643" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sukanta-das" source="Orion">Sukanta Das</keyword> is from a family of moulis from the Sundarban delta’s Kultali area in the state of West Bengal, on the eastern coast of India. The lives of people of this community of traditional honey collectors lay, sometimes precariously, entwined with this largest continuous mangrove forests on earth as they venture into the deep, to collect honey. About 60% of the <keyword id="63330" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sundarbans" source="Orion">Sundarbans</keyword> is in Bangladesh and the rest in West Bengal, India. The Indian Sundarban is spread across 9,629 square kilometres (sq.km.), of which 4,493 sq. km., is inhabited and the rest is categorised as reserve forest. Home to the <keyword id="403619" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Royal-Bengal-tigers" source="Orion">Royal Bengal tigers</keyword>, the risk to life is so high that this honey is also called “blood honey”. And it is nearly twice as expensive as the branded honey. WATCH: What is blood honey and why is it so expensive? <div type="Video" msid="85682316" hostid="261" title="What is blood honey and why is it so expensive?" dataSource="BUSINESSINSIDER" thumbUrl="https://denmark.timesinternet.in/cmslite/api/app/images.jpg?msid=85682316"></div> “In our area, there are many cases of people being attacked by tigers when they go into the forests to collect honey. Some are even killed,” Das says. Though Das has remained in the same business of honey as his family, his job is much safer. Since March 2020, he has been a part of a cooperative, Sundarban Banaraksha Bahumukhi Samabay Samity, that maintains bee boxes in the protected forest area and farms their own honey. This Samity is one of the three self help groups (SHG) started by the <keyword id="780039" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Joint-Forest-Management-Committee" source="Orion">Joint Forest Management Committee</keyword>, a partnership body of the local community and the forest department, to provide the community an alternative livelihood. “We now have multiple camps in the forest [where bee boxes are maintained]. We have placed these boxes in protected areas, which traditional beekeepers maintain as samitys [cooperatives] formed with the help of the forest department. The department helped us get a loan from the West Bengal State Cooperative Bank,” says Pralay Samanta, another member of the cooperative who handles the marketing of the brand of this honey, Bonphool. Nidhiram Naskar, like Das, who used to collect honey from the forests has also joined the community for a safer employment option. But for him, it has also turned out to be more profitable. “Earlier, we used to get anywhere around ₹100-150 [when we sold to buyers]. We used to go in groups of three or four and in the end we would make around three or four thousand rupees (from one trip in the forest). Now we make double the amount per kilogram and overall,” says Naskar. Last year, they produced 34 tonnes of honey and managed to pay ₹10,000 monthly to every person involved. This year, they are planning to scale up. And in between, the demand rose sharply when there was a controversy about big Indian brands <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/honeys-bitter-truth-sugar-syrup-that-indian-tests-cant-detect/articleshow/79540565.cms">selling </a>spurious honey in December. “We produced a total [of] 34 tonnes [of] honey. We had two kinds of bottles – one of 490 gram [gm] and one of 250 gm. The 490 gm bottle was priced at ₹300 and the 250 gm bottle was priced at ₹175. We distributed the profits equally among all the beekeepers,” says Samanta. Like Bonphool, Sundarini Naturals is another cooperative organisation that works with the honey collector community. What started with the procurement and selling of two to three tonnes of honey in 2015 has increased now to eight tonnes in 2020. In 2021, the sales target is 10 tonnes. In these years, the number of farmers has also increased from 50 to 214. “Earlier, we used to pay the farmers ₹150 -160. But now we pay them ₹250 per kg at the time of procurement. For such a production of ten tonnes, our cost is over ₹20 lakh. For this, we have taken a loan from the state cooperative bank,” says Sima Das, procurement officer, Sundarini Naturals. But a better payment procedure is still a challenge. “We pay the farmers in their bank [accounts] every ten days and now all of them have accounts. But there is a problem. As these farmers are from deep interiors of the Sundarban area, they find it difficult to collect their money. If there are [more] kiosk-type banks set up in the Sundarban area, then the farmers can collect their money easily,” says Das. There is often a question about higher pricing of this honey. A kilogram of organic Sundarini honey is sold for ₹900 and 490 gm of Bonphool honey is sold at ₹560. Branded honey available in the market is often found at half the price. <div type="image" title="honey comparison" msid="85967681" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;honey comparison &amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> But Samanta explains that people are willing to pay to keep their honey pure. “People often ask why Sundarban honey is more expensive. Firstly, one major part of our cost input is going deep into the forest area. This means that there is also nothing like pesticides or chemicals or any other impurities in this. Additionally, the purpose of ventures like this is the financial upkeep of this community too. So, we have to keep our prices a bit high,” he says. But the customers are not just paying for a social cause, explains Debasish Chakraborty, marketing head of Dhenki, an organisation that started during the pandemic last year to help farmers to sell their produce. “Sundarban’s honey is multi-floral. The difference in colour depends on the kind of flowers involved, but normally it is of caramel colour. Some [are] a little red and some a little blackish. It is comparatively less thick. Because this honey is multi-floral and there is practically no use of antibiotics or pesticides in Sundarbans, moreover the bees are also of the wild variety, the taste and nutrition of this honey is very different from others,” he says. Both Samanta and Chakraborty point out that there are plenty of takers of this honey in other parts of India now. Chakraborty sees plenty of opportunity for the brand to grow if the government can project it in the right way. “It would be [a] big boost to the business if the government promotes the distinct qualities of the Sundarban honey,” says Chakraborty. Das wants to reach out to the government for a two-pronged help for the business. For the company, she needs capital and infrastructure help. “We would like to request the government for some working capital to procure (more) honey because it is seasonal. And as a small organisation, this kind of help in the form of some grant can help us a lot as the money needs to be invested for the entire year. We would also need some support to establish a honey processing plant,” says Das. For the collectors, she wants forest permits and smooth insurance schemes. “We would like to request the government for forest permits. Only a few farmers get such permits. If more farmers get permits, they will be benefited. The honey collectors stay in the fringe areas of the forests,” she says. As of now, all three, Sundarini, Dhenki and Bonphool use their websites to sell their honey. Bonphool is also available on ecommerce portals like Amazon. “We use Amazon in a big way. We use Biswa Bangla (West Bengal government’s website) and our own website Sundarban JFMC. Also others like Purulia JFMC,” says Samanta. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/sports/news/india-cricket-coach-ravi-shastri-tests-covid-positive-placed-in-isolation/articleshow/85947449.cms">India cricket coach Ravi Shastri tests COVID positive, placed in isolation</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/atal-pension-yojna-dominates-social-security-scheme-with-66-nps-subscriber-base/articleshow/85945387.cms">Atal Pension Yojna dominates social security scheme with 66% NPS subscriber base</a>

‘Blood honey’ is a booming business and the rising demand is changing the lives of moulis in Sundarbans

Kolkata, Feb 14 () E-commerce major Flipkart iscontemplating to go for partnership with local stores offeringits customers a "touch and feel" experience, at least for someproducts, as online commerce continues to be minuscule in theoverall Indian retail industry.The move comes close on the heels of Reliance planninggrocery foray taking local kirana stores onboard.Walmart-owned Flipkart has already established adelivery model using local kirana stores and onboarded some27,000 stores across 700 cities.Now, Flipkart proposes to have authorised "buy zones"where a customer can walk in and check a product but he or shehas to order it online, a company official said on Thursday."Our pilot project was successful in Hyderabad withmobiles where we partnered with local kirana stores for atouch and feel experience. But the order has to be takenonline from a kiosk installed there," Flipkart chief corporateaffairs officer Rajneesh Kumar said.Now, the e-commerce major plans to expand thislocalised partnerships in other parts of the country, he said.Flipkart and Amazon now faces the heat of theCompetition Commission of India's probe against them foralleged malpractices including deep discounting and tie-upwith preferred sellers."Online market accounts for only 3 per cent of thetotal retail market in the country," Kumar said.In fashion, tie-ups with local tailors had offeredhuge benefit to e-commerce company in a sharp reduction in thenumber of returns.In the mobile category, pure online brands had movedto offline brick and mortar stores to expand its base andprotect their margins.On Thursday, Flipkart organised a workshop for MSMEsin Kolkata, a part of a series of programmes to help theenterprises leverage e-commerce to grow their business.Kumar said the move will help deepen base of productson the marketplace platform. BSMNN NN

Flipkart to offer customers ''touch and feel'' experience

<img class="gwt-Image" src="/photo/24692286.cms" /> Shopping is a lively experience. While many do it as a stress-busting exercise, some do it because they just feel the need to buy. With the Festival of Lights just around the corner, most people are out on a shopping spree. But this Diwali could be a bit different for the majority of <keyword id="44446" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="retailers">retailers</keyword> and <keyword id="1073727" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="e-tailers">e-tailers</keyword> across the country as they engage with a tech-savvy and digitally informed crowd. 
 Interestingly, not all shoppers are geeky millennials (born after 1980) looking for the coveted Gold iPhone or the Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch at mega-retailers. Instead, ‘digitally driven’ customers (who might have already done their research online) are invading every nook and cranny – right from top notch electronics outlets to sparkling jewellery stores and <keyword id="1915266" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="neighbourhood-shops">neighbourhood shops</keyword> who have stocked up on traditional Diwali ware including dry sweets, clay diyas, crackers and rangoli materials. 
 The domestic retail market in India is worth an annual $500 billion and about 45 million small merchants are now operating here. Yet, catering to a connected and high-spending consumer community is a big challenge, especially with so many big-box retailers, hypermarkets and e-commerce mammoths around. If you own a shop, a brick-and-mortar one, here are 9 quick-fix <keyword id="514572" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Tech-Solutions">tech solutions</keyword> that may help you drive in more customers this shopping season – without spending a fortune on branding, marketing or revamping your current outlet/s. 
 
Push your store online – the more eyeballs you get, the better 
Unless they know you are there, people can’t find their way to your business. Setting up a digital store only takes a few minutes, thanks to numerous e-commerce enablers like the SmartStore from Bigfoot Retail, Infibeam-run Build a Bazaar and more, all of whom offer DIY solutions. Then there are online marketplaces like Amazon India and Flipkart where SMEs can register as third party sellers/franchises and business is bound to boom. 
 
Leverage the location advantage – mobile is the watchword If you are selling designer diyas or sterling silverware in Delhi, not too many in Kerala will be interested. But trust the NCR crowd to turn up for the sale if you have done some <keyword id="1915279" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="geospecific-advertising">geospecific advertising</keyword> and <keyword id="1915281" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="geofencing">geofencing</keyword>. With the world going mobile and India no exception either, apps are aplenty to help shoppers find the best local deals – be it shopping, sightseeing, movies or dinner. As most people love to keep track of deals, coupons, product information and freebies, it makes sense to leverage the location advantage and hook your local customers via mobile. 
 Local promotion will also turn big on <keyword id="6354632" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Social-media">social media</keyword>. For instance, Twitter will soon allow companies to promote tweets to people who are near specific latitudes and longitudes. You can also take a call on Big Data analytics that will give you access to demographic details, shopping patterns and social behaviour – so that you can send most relevant marketing messages. 
 
Enhance In-store experience – build a ‘physical’ Web 
This may take some time and a little investment, but works well in the long run. The mantra is to create a ‘physical’ web that replicates one’s online experience within the brick-and-mortar outlet. An amazing example is the recently launched Android Land store in Bangalore and NCR. Set up interactive kiosks for product browsing, comparisons and access to consumer reviews; provide in-store inventory search and finally, allow customers some hands-on time to understand product functionality. Put together, it will feel like a seamless navigation between Web and physical environments, done interchangeably to meet one’s shopping needs. In case you are running a hybrid model, offer a bouquet of services that will combine both online and offline features. 
 
Speed up shopping with a smile – tech tools can help 
Unlike the previous breed of shoppers, the current lot doesn’t shop by printed specs or gut feelings. In fact, you are sure to find one or the other spending ages on the smartphone or tab, comparing features and pricing. Another could be walking around the store, trying to track you via Google Maps. And those deep into social shopping could even try and get peer reviews before making a purchase. 
 
Not all shoppers will go to that extreme, but many feel irritated if they are hurried by human assistants before their personal browsing is over. Keep a discreet distance till then or better still, provide some technology touch points to speed things up. Your sales staff can be on the floor with handheld devices through which they can accept payments and assist people with product search, specs comparison and more. Or how about self-help barcode scanners like iScan that allow customers scan their merchandise? It means they need not spend time in check-out queues as their purchased items are scanned and billed automatically. 
 
<keyword id="1468988" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Showrooming">Showrooming</keyword> hurts – but this TV commercial has a solution 
We recently came across a TVC that shows a young couple hurrying out of a store (presumably to find better pricing elsewhere) and the sales person asking them back. He then displays a full price comparison on a handheld device and proves that the store offers the best deal. What the couple did is popularly known as showrooming – the act of checking out a product in a store and then buying it online for a lower price. According to a recent IBM study, it is a growing trend in the country and there is a higher incidence of showrooming in China (26%) and India (13%) than in the US (7%). 
 
Although it hurts most retailers, there are ways to curtail it – in the same way the TVC suggested. The trick lies in creating an exciting customer experience through hi-tech tools, hands-on product experience and personalised services. In brief, retailers must understand consumer interests and expectations in a bid to develop curated experience for all. And a well-aligned, multi-channel approach (Web, mobile, tab and physical store) is the way to win today’s consumers who love convenience over everything else. 
 
Cash and swipe are last-century relics – go for <keyword id="1915270" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="mobile-PoS">mobile POS</keyword> 
For small-format consumer retail, mobile payment can be a great option as it has greater acceptability among young shoppers, does away with checkout queues and helps one handle just about any transaction anywhere. Business owners can also accept payments via credit/debit cards without paying high transaction fees. You only need to pay the m-payment enabler, which is usually a small percentage of each transaction. Although Near-Field Communication (NFC) is the best bet for m-commerce till date, a whole lot of home-grown companies are now providing cost-effective software solutions/apps that can turn even a simple feature phone into a POS terminal for swiping credit/debit cards or even for some simple bank transactions. 
 
Showcase things upfront – it speaks of integrity 
That’s the best way to win customer loyalty in a highly competitive scenario. Don’t just say you are the best in the town – prove it with your products and services. Amazon is the role model here – even for those retailing offline. After all, business values like speed, efficiency and transparency can boost your venture no end. What’s more, there are cool tools to prove it to your customers as well, as e-tailing major Myntra.com has recently showcased. During its Diwali sale, the e-commerce site was offering special prizes for top spenders and had in place a real time leader board – so that customers can track their positions online and find out if they had won. Apple does the same when a deal is going in iTunes Store and the message is clear enough. A transparent model puts your customers in the driver’s seat and shows you have a cherish-worthy value system. 
 
To stay ahead of competition – re-invent your business 
Every business has its quirky moments and out-of-the-box thinking (even with some risk elements) can really get the market going for you. Take a hint from fashion e-tailer Yebhi.com or online jeweller CaratLane.com, both of whom offer a try-and-buy service and bring home the store experience. Lenskart.com has gone one step ahead – it not only offers home try-on, but will also get your eyes tested at your doorstep. 
 So think differently about your business. You should be ready to give something new to your customers every 6-8 months. <keyword id="3670298" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Small-retailers">Small retailers</keyword>, too, can think along new lines which can gain them good traction. For instance, a local grocery shop we knew in Bangalore used to mail new recipes every Sunday if people ordered from the store and that worked out fabulously. 
 
Meet your customers fast – you need to build a relationship 
That’s what Yelp’s Jeremy Stoppelman did and he did it face to face to understand what kind of people were using the revamped Yelp and what they were looking for. The company still holds these get-togethers, but you can keep things simple and do it via social media. 
 
That’s one must-not-skip strategy exercise nowadays as brands are built through storytelling and connected customers want to get involved in a meaningful way. It means they want to share their stories, opinions and insights which are both relevant to your business and a pronounced assertion of their own self. So keep your finger on the social pulse and build your business around it to ensure crowd following.

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