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The country's leading retailer <keyword id="10926" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="reliance" source="Orion">Reliance</keyword> will acquire the <keyword id="2126180" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="beauty-retail" source="Orion">beauty retail</keyword> business of the Lalbhai family-promoted <keyword id="6362630" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="arvind" source="Orion">Arvind</keyword> Fashion, expanding its play in the fast-growing Beauty and Personal Care (BPC) market. Arvind Fashion on Friday said it has "entered into a Share Purchase Agreement (SPA) with Reliance Beauty &amp; Personal Care Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd to sell and transfer the entire <keyword id="400752" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="equity-stake" source="Orion">equity stake</keyword> held by the company," it said. Upon completion of the formalities under the said SPA, Arvind Beauty Brands Retail would cease to be a subsidiary of the company, according to a regulatory filing from the Ahmedabad-based company. Over consideration of sales, the company said: "transaction has been done at an enterprise value of Rs 216 crore towards the sale of the entire equity stake and repayment of <keyword id="6362287" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="loans" source="Orion">loans</keyword>. The Purchase consideration towards the sale of the entire equity stake is Rs 99.02 crore." Arvind Beauty Brands Retail had a turnover of Rs 336.70 crore in FY23 and contributed 7.60 per cent of the consolidated revenue of Arvind Fashions. Reliance Retail has entered into the fast-growing beauty business with Tira, an omnichannel beauty retail platform. The country's leading retailer competes with brands like HUL's Lakme, Nykaa, Tata and LVMH's Sephora in India's growing beauty and personal care marketplace. Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL) is the holding company of all the retail companies under the RIL (Reliance Industries Limited) group. According to a joint report by Redseer Strategy Consultant and Peak XV (formerly Sequoia Capital India &amp; Southeast Asia) - the Indian beauty and personal care market is estimated to grow to USD 30 billion by 2027, accounting for 5 per cent of the global market, according to a report. The Indian Beauty and Personal Care (BPC) market -- estimated to be around USD 19 billion in 2022 -- has very low per capita spend in the category but as the country prospers, the growth headroom will materialise strongly, the report said India is uniquely positioned as one of the most attractive and fastest-growing BPC markets globally, the report said. Shares of Arvind Fashions Ltd on Friday were trading at Rs 347.35 at BSE, up 6.71 per cent.

Reliance Retail to acquire Arvind Fashions' beauty retail business

<ul><li> <keyword id="6144648" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="United-States-Polo-Association" source="Orion">United States Polo Association</keyword> has a new brand ambassador. </li><li>This is the first time the brand will have an Indian ambassador, <keyword id="2180" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="arjun-rampal" source="Orion">Arjun Rampal</keyword>.</li></ul><keyword id="12691931" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="u-s-polo-assn" source="Orion">U.S.Polo Assn</keyword>., the official brand of the United States Polo Association (USPA) retailed in India by <keyword id="9869405" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="arvind-fashions-limited" source="Orion">Arvind Fashions Limited</keyword>, today announced style icon Arjun Rampal as the India brand ambassador for its new ‘Play Together’ campaign. This is the first time the brand will have an Indian ambassador. This announcement comes ahead of the brand creating a new store identity for all the upcoming stores as a part of its expansion plans. <keyword id="12691932" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="u-s-polo-assn" source="Orion">U.S. Polo Assn</keyword>., Brand Ambassador, Arjun Rampal, said,“Being associated with an iconic brand like USPA is a great feeling and becoming the first Indian brand ambassador is truly an honour. U.S. Polo Assn. is known for its sport-inspired, classic American style and each season the brand takes it a notch higher. The new campaign focuses on twinning which is a fun and fashion-forward concept that captures the pure, emotional bond fathers share with their children. As a father this is what drew me to the brand.” As part of the expansion plan, the brand will release the new ‘Play Together’ campaign featuring Arjun Rampal and will also unveil the new brand look across its 392 stores in India. The new stores will have an ‘all-white’ interior with the U.S. Polo Assn. brand colours. The signature red, blue &amp; white stripes will welcome customers at the entrance. Wood, metal, and concrete detailing will further add to the overall look. As you step into each store, a ‘polo wall’ that embodies the spirit of the game draws all your attention. Speaking on the expansion, Mr. Amitabh Suri, CEO, U.S. Polo Assn - Arvind Fashions Limited, said, “Through our new campaign with Arjun, we are focussed on expanding the brand reach to the offline and online customer base. ‘Play together’ captures the emotional &amp; playful bond a father and child share by twinning their look. This thought is also reflected in the clothes and accessories we offer for both men and children. Arjun’s association with the brand draws an instant parallel to his real-life persona, making it very relatable for the audience. His huge fan base will encourage demand and excite our consumers to visit our remodelled stores that embody the spirit of Polo – classic, and cool.” The ‘Play Together’ Campaign is conceptualized by <keyword id="2914701" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="wyp" source="Orion">WYP</keyword> Creatives, produced by Karma Productions &amp; shot by ace director and photographer, Bosco Christopher Bhandarkar &amp; Rid Burman. The campaign comes to live with actor Arjun Rampal through talent firm Exceed Entertainment. It showcases Arjun twinning with his onscreen child in the new Autumn Winter range by USPA. Staying true to the brand spirit, the campaign was shot in the authentic world of polo with the field full of barns, horses, and equipment. The ‘Play Together’ campaign will be out on all major print and digital platforms from 8th December and will set the tone for an exciting season ahead for U.S. Polo Assn.

U.S.Polo Assn. ropes in Arjun Rampal as its brand ambassador

<ul><li>Indian e-commerce giant <keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword> has bought a 7.8% stake in Aditya Birla Fashion for ₹1,500 crore.</li><li>With the partnership, ABRL fashion brands will find their way onto the e-commerce platforms Flipkart and Myntra.</li><li>The group has raised ₹2,500 crore since April, 2020. </li></ul>Indian e-commerce giant Flipkart has bought a 7.8% stake in Aditya Birla Fashion for ₹1,500 crore. After the transaction, <keyword id="9387669" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Aditya-Birla-Fashion-Retail">Aditya Birla Fashion Retail</keyword> Limited will have a 55.13% stake in the company. ABRL runs the Pantaloon chain of retail stores across the country. The shares of ABRL jumped by almost 5% with the news of the fundraise. The group has raised ₹2,500 crore overall since April 2020. <div type="image" title="ABRL." msid="78822832" hostid="261"></div> According to <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/technology/flipkart-amazon-race-to-bag-stake-in-aditya-birla-fashion-and-retail/articleshow/78799621.cms">reports</a>, <keyword id="18635" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon">Amazon</keyword> was also in the race to buy a stake in ABRL. Announcing the partnership, Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman Aditya Birla Group said, “This partnership is an emphatic endorsement of the growth potential of India. It also reflects our strong conviction in the future of the apparel industry in India, which is poised to touch $100bn in the next 5 years. Fashion retail inIndia is set for robust long-term growth due to strong fundamentals of a large and growing middle class, favorable demographics, rising disposable incomes and aspiration for brands. Rapid growth of technology infrastructure will further accelerate this process.” The need to transition to e-commerce ABRL which runs the Pantaloon chain of retail stores across the country and owns brands like Allen Solly, Peter England has borne the brunt of the coronavirus pandemic. In the first quarter of the current financial year, the company had posted a loss of ₹410.36 crore as opposed to a profit of ₹21.56 crore in the same quarter the previous year. With the stores shut for a majority of the first quarter and the falling footfalls at retail outlets, analysts at Spark Capital expect the company’s annual numbers to take a hit and for profit to return only in FY22. Long road to recovery <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt; table-layout: fixed;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Year </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Revenue in ₹ mn </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">PAT in ₹ mn </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">FY20 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">87,879 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-1,007 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">FY21 Estimate </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">61,877 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-2,966 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">FY22 Estimate </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">99,065 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">353 </td></tr></tbody></table>Spark Capital report from August, 2020. And so, ABRL has been looking at ways to expand its online offerings. “E-commerce, as a route to market, is being scaled aggressively and the company is also looking to introduce new omni-channel offerings,” the company had said in May. Now, with the Flipkart partnership, ABRL fashion brands will find their way onto the e-commerce platforms Flipkart and Myntra and leverage the e-commerce giant’s reach. It also plans to expand its offerings in categories such as innerwear, athleisure, casualwear and ethnic wear which have been identified as ‘high-growth’ categories by the company. “Through this transaction with ABFRL, we will work towards making available a wide range of products for fashion-conscious consumers across different retail formats across the country. We look forward to working with ABFRL and its well established and comprehensive fashion and retail infrastructure as we address the promising opportunity of the apparel industry in India,” said Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO of Flipkart Group. Earlier this year, Flipkart had also bought a minority stake in the publicly listed Arvind Fashions for ₹260 crore. Arvind Fashions has 1,290 stores across India as well as a 10,000 multi-brand outlet presence. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/cipla-zydus-cadila-jubilant-life-and-dr-reddys-shares-gain-after-fda-approves-remdesivir-for-treating-covid-19-patients/articleshow/78823033.cms">Cipla, Zydus Cadila, Jubilant Life and Dr Reddy’s shares gain after FDA approves Remdesivir for treating COVID-19 patients</a>

Flipkart beats Amazon to buy a 7.8% stake in Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail

<ul><li><keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword> has made a strategic investment in USPL – the fashion house which has brands like <keyword id="6354486" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="virat-kohli">Virat Kohli</keyword>'s Wrogn and <keyword id="210696" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Kriti-Sanon">Kriti Sanon</keyword>'s Ms Taken.</li><li>Founded in 2012 by Anjana Reddy, USPL has over 750 offline retail outlets in 100 cities across India.</li><li>The latest investment comes after Flipkart had earlier bought stakes in Aditya Birla Fashion Retail and Arvind Fashions.</li></ul>Indian e-commerce giant Flipkart has made a strategic investment in USPL – the fashion house which has brands like Virat Kohli's Wrogn and Kriti Sanon's Ms Taken. The series F funding round for USPL will see Flipkart help strengthen the online strategy of the company. “This investment will help USPL and the Flipkart Group find deeper synergies as we continue on our commitment to grow an ecosystem of partnerships that deliver value for consumers and brands,” said Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO, Flipkart Group. Founded in 2012 by Anjana Reddy, USPL has over 750 offline retail outlets in 100 cities across India. “Post pandemic recovery has been great for us and we are at 80% of pre-COVID sales. During the time when the world is moving towards omni-channel retailing, we can significantly strengthen our online strategy by working with Flipkart and Myntra, the two prominent players in the Indian online fashion space,” said Reddy in a statement. Flipkart’s rapid investment strategy Meanwhile, at Flipkart, the e-commerce giant has been strengthening its position in the fashion e-retail space by investing in major companies. Here are the investments made by Flipkart recently <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt; table-layout: fixed;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Company </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Investment by Flipkart </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Aditya Birla Fashion Retail Limited </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,500 crore </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Arvind Fashions </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹260 crore </td></tr></tbody></table> Flipkart had also recently <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/flipkart-acquires-gaming-startup-mech-mocha-as-it-looks-to-tap-the-social-gaming-space-for-more-consumers/articleshow/79014466.cms">acquired social gaming platform MechMocha</a> to boost its gaming strategy and bring about new customer additions. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/mitron-tv-secures-its-third-funding-since-its-launch-six-months-ago-as-it-builds-on-its-atmanirbhar-strategy/articleshow/79056915.cms">Mitron TV secures its third funding since its launch six months ago as it builds on its Atmanirbhar strategy</a>

Flipkart makes its third fashion investment in five months — bets on USPL that houses brands like Virat Kohli's Wrogn and Kriti Sanon's Ms Taken

<ul class="summary-list"><li>One year after Russia invaded Ukraine, <a href="https://som.yale.edu/story/2022/over-1000-companies-have-curtailed-operations-russia-some-remain">just 520 firms have fully exited</a> Russia, per a Yale study.</li><li>Foreign firms can't quit Russia that quickly due to operational, ethical, and policy challenges.</li></ul>It's hard to break up with Russia.More than a year after Russia invaded Ukraine, just 520 companies have made a clean break with the country, <a href="https://som.yale.edu/story/2022/over-1000-companies-have-curtailed-operations-russia-some-remain" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to an ongoing study</a> from Yale University. That's despite 1,000 companies announcing they were voluntarily cutting back on operations just two months after the Ukraine war started. And it's not for lack of trying: More than 2,000 companies are seeking approval to exit the Russian market, the <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/77368014-1397-4a08-901d-1f996e66d627" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">Financial Times</a> reported on Tuesday, citing a person involved in an exit negotiation. But the Russian authority handling the applications meets only three times a month and considers up to seven applications each time, thus prolonging the exit process, per the FT.Others who have varying degrees of active operations in Russia cannot simply pack up and go for a variety of business and non-business-related reasons.Quite simply, it's just not that straightforward for a company to get out of Russia right now — and there are three main reasons why.<h2>1. Companies have been trying to exit Russia in an orderly fashion</h2>Many companies were quick to announce their intent to leave the Russian market after it invaded Ukraine.While some big brands such as <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mcdonalds-quits-russia-30-years-ukraine-war-putin-2022-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">McDonald's</a>, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/starbucks-is-leaving-russia-after-mcdonalds-2022-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Starbucks</a> have fully exited the country, others may be taking a slow and orderly approach to their exit strategy or various reasons.As Hassan Malik, a senior sovereign analyst at the Boston-based investment management consultancy Loomis Sayles, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/explainer-russia-economy-inflation-slowed-unemployment-steady-sanctions-ukraine-war-2022-6">told Insider in June last year,</a> "Translating boardroom decisions into on-the-ground action takes time."Some companies also cited obligations to their local employees while deciding to leave or stay."Our colleagues in Russia have, through no fault of their own, endured months of stress and uncertainty," Arvind Krishna, the CEO of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-ibm-lay-off-hundreds-russia-staff-corporate-exodus-economy-2022-6">IBM — one of the earliest companies to exit the market</a> — <a href="https://newsroom.ibm.com/Update-on-IBMs-Business-Operations-in-Russia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said in a statement in June.</a> "We do not think it is right to abandon our people in Russia," UK consumer giant Unilever said on <a href="https://www.unilever.com/news/press-and-media/press-releases/2023/unilever-statement-on-the-war-in-ukraine/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">February 13.</a> The conglomerate, which currently employs 3,000 people in Russia, stopped all imports and exports of its products and capital flows into and out of the country last year but continues to supply made-in-Russia products domestically.There are also concerns about what would happen to businesses if they simply shut their operations in Russia. "It is clear that were we to abandon our business and brands in the country, they would be appropriated – and then operated – by the Russian state," Unilever said. Selling the business isn't a good option, either. "To date we have not been able to find a solution which avoids the Russian state potentially gaining further benefit," the company added.<h2>2. The Kremlin has devised programs to keep the economy going</h2>The Russian government made it challenging for companies to leave right after countries started imposing sanctions on the Kremlin over its war in Ukraine. Investors who want to sell their businesses and are from <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-publishes-list-unfriendly-countries-Ukraine-war-condemnation-2022-3" rel="">"unfriendly countries"</a> — those that have imposed sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine — must donate at least 10% of the sale proceeds to the Russian budget, according to a <a href="https://minfin.gov.ru/ru/document?id_4=301633-vypiska_iz_protokola_zasedaniya_podkomissii_pravitelstvennoi_komissii_po_kontrolyu_za_osushchestvleniem_inostrannykh_investitsii_v_rossiiskoi_federatsii_ot_2_marta_2023_goda__1434" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">document posted on Monday</a> by the country's finance ministry.This donation is on top of a <a href="https://minfin.gov.ru/ru/document?id_4=301169-vypiska_iz_protokola_zasedaniya_podkomissii_pravitelstvennoi_komissii_po_kontrolyu_za_osushchestvleniem_inostrannykh_investitsii_v_rossiiskoi_federatsii_ot_22_dekabrya_2022_goda__1181" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">previously announced</a> <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/russia-outlines-plan-unfriendly-investors-sell-up-half-price-2022-12-30/" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">50% cut</a> on the sale of their assets, which has to be borne by these investors.These hurdles are in addition to obtaining state approvals before they can leave Russia and an implicit pressure on employers to preserve jobs — a tactic Putin's regime has been using through the years, Loomis Sayles' Malik told Insider in June.Thus, companies that want to exit Russia are pressed to find buyers for their Russian operations who would continue running the business under a different brand. The pool of buyers is also limited due to international sanctions against Russia. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-mcdonalds-buy-to-pay-all-workers-sold-businessman-2022-5">McDonald's</a>, for example, sold its business in the country to a local licensee in May. Under the deal, the buyer was required to continue employing and paying all of the fast-food giant's staff in Russia for two years after the takeover, according to a <a href="https://corporate.mcdonalds.com/corpmcd/en-us/our-stories/article/BusinessModelAndStrategy.russia-govor.html">McDonald's statement in May</a>.These moves — alongside a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/putins-mobilization-of-men-for-the-ukraine-war-hits-russias-economy-2022-10">labor crunch due to Putin's widescale mobilization of men</a> — have kept the <a href="https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/putin-looks-positives-russias-consumer-demand-industrial-output-slide-2023-03-29/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unemployment rate low</a> and Russia's economy is appearing resilient over one year into the war. But its time may be up soon.As <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-could-run-out-money-2024-sanctions-oleg-deripaska-putin-2023-3" rel="">aluminum oligarch Oleg Deripaska</a> told the Krasnoyarsk Economic Forum in Siberia on March 2, Russia "will need foreign investors" as its funds are running low, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-03-02/billionaire-deripaska-warns-russia-may-run-out-of-money-in-2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">Bloomberg reported</a> on March 2. "There will be no money already next year," Deripaska said, per the media outlet.<h2>3. Multinational companies face operation challenges in their exits</h2>Because many foreign companies operating in Russia are multinationals, shutting operations in the country can have a domino effect on their businesses elsewhere.Because such companies are integrated globally, their worldwide operations could be impacted if a subsidiary in one place is closed, Saul Estrin, a professor at the London School of Economics, and Klaus E. Meyer, a professor at Ivey Business School, explained in a <a href="https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/businessreview/2023/03/28/why-its-so-difficult-for-companies-to-leave-russia/" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">blog post on Wednesday.</a>"This interdependence may be small when the subsidiary solely has a sales and service role," they wrote, citing food and US beverage giants <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mcdonalds-quits-russia-30-years-ukraine-war-putin-2022-5">McDonald's</a> and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/starbucks-is-leaving-russia-after-mcdonalds-2022-5">Starbucks</a> as examples. "However, the interdependence is high and disruptive for the parent organization when the subsidiary is procuring critical raw materials or intermediate products for the parent that cannot easily be obtained elsewhere."Complex global supply chains mean that companies such as those in the automotive and machine tool industries would have to change their procurement processes if they close an operation, they added.

It's really hard for foreign companies to break up with Russia — and there are 3 main reasons why

<ul><li><keyword id="1788525" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Kiara-Advani">Kiara Advani</keyword> will feature in Colgate’s Visible White Toothpaste campaign. </li><li>Colgate’s latest ad with Kiara talks about how dazzling white teeth are the best beauty asset. </li></ul>Colgate-Palmolive (India) Limited, the market leader in oral care in the country, has roped in Kiara Advani as the new brand ambassador for its latest Visible White Toothpaste campaign. The integrated brand campaign with Kiara showcases how Visible White Toothpaste helps to achieve one shade whiter teeth in one week in a digital-first campaign across touchpoints. Based on the insight that dazzling white teeth are your best beauty asset, the ad film features Kiara completely unfazed and dazzling through the day even as things don’t go as planned. And, reminding us all that Visible White toothpaste is a critical part of the beauty regimen. When used as directed on the pack, Visible White toothpaste removes extrinsic stains, giving consumers one shade whiter teeth in one week. <div type="Youtube" id="A8lqSld0_io" title="Dazzle White, Dazzle Right with Colgate Visible White [ English-25 seconds]" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/A8lqSld0_io/mqdefault.jpg"></div> Commenting on the campaign and celebrity collaboration, Arvind Chintamani, Vice President, Marketing, Colgate-Palmolive (India) Limited, said, “Teeth Whitening is a huge consumer need in India and with advanced technology Colgate Visible White Toothpaste is able to help teeth become one shade whiter in one week. We are excited to partner with Kiara on this exciting journey to remind everyone that your dazzling smile is your strongest beauty asset, so go ahead and Dazzle White, Dazzle Right!” Fashioned to strike a chord with young India, this digital-first marketing campaign has been conceptualized by RedFuse Communications – WPP’s integrated communications partner to Colgate India. This campaign positions Visible White toothpaste as a beauty essential and will run across media touchpoints such as digital, TV and print. Speaking about the idea behind the campaign, Delna Sethna, Executive Creative Director, Red Fuse said, “The Colgate Visible White campaign was created with the objective of reinforcing the importance of teeth whitening as part of one’s daily beauty routine. The campaign film with Kiara Advani and the communication of Dazzle White Dazzle Right, depicts how regular use of Visible White boosts confidence, irrespective of common beauty faux pas.” The campaign will run in 7 languages, including Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Bengali, Marathi and English.

Colgate onboards Kiara Advani as its brand ambassador; launches a new ad

<ul><li>As Walmart-owned <keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword> moves towards a possibly $10 billion initial public offering (IPO), it seems to be shedding flab with a nearly $300 million write off in Jabong.</li><li>Flipkart India CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy described 2020 as the year when the company turned ‘financially prudent’, without adding any details.</li><li>Judith McKenna, president and chief executive of Walmart International, said that even after Flipkart being shut for 53 days in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the e-commerce business closed the year stronger than it started.</li><li>For Flipkart, in 2021, the focus will be on grocery and fashion bringing loyal customers through its subscription programme and investing in technology and infrastructure.</li></ul>Digging inside Walmart's earnings has revealed a lot about what's happening at Flipkart. As the India-born e-commerce subsidiary moves towards a <a href="https://www.livemint.com/market/ipo/walmart-readies-for-10-bn-flipkart-ipo-11607300769974.html">possibly</a> $10 billion initial public offering (IPO), it seems to be shedding flab with a nearly $300 million write off in one of its units. As Walmart boss Doug Mcmillon wants to “step on the gas” in India, Flipkart chief executive officer (CEO) Kalyan Krishnamurthy has decided to focus on areas like grocery and fashion as well as investments in technology and infrastructure. <div type="Youtube" id="zUinE3RR_nU" title="Flipkart Gets Leaner With A $300 Million Jabong Write-Off" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/zUinE3RR_nU/mqdefault.jpg"></div> Krishnamurthy described 2020 as the year when Flipkart turned ‘financially prudent’. While he didn’t add any details, inside Walmart’s earnings report, there were “business restructuring charges” including $293 million non-cash impairment for the <a href="http://jabong.com/">Jabong.com</a> trade name. Business Insider reached out to Flipkart for more inputs but the spokesperson said that they have nothing more to add. <keyword id="1484171" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="jabong-com">Jabong.com</keyword> was a fashion e-commerce entity that Flipkart had acquired through Myntra in 2016 and eventually absorbed it. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="A step towards IPO?" comment="subhead" text="A step towards IPO?">A step towards IPO?</cmsannotation> Such restructurings are common when a company is planning to go public. It makes the IPO more attractive. Walmart is reportedly preparing Flipkart for a big market debut possibly in the US – a $10 billion initial public offering (IPO). The listing is expected to boost Flipkart’s valuation to $40 billion from the current $24.9 billion. While the company hasn’t given a timeline or details for the market offering, <a href="https://www.livemint.com/market/ipo/walmart-readies-for-10-bn-flipkart-ipo-11607300769974.html">reports</a> say that it could be in 2021 with Walmart divesting a 25% stake in the company. <div type="image" title="Flipkart valuation history - December 2020" msid="81105071" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Flipkart valuation history until December 2020&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Shedding past baggage is one thing, focussing on the future is another" comment="subhead" text="Shedding past baggage is one thing, focussing on the future is another">Shedding past baggage is one thing, focussing on the future is another</cmsannotation> Walmart is clearly very bullish on Flipkart. Both Walmart CEO Mcmillion and Judith McKenna, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Walmart International were all praises for the team in India during the earnings call. McKenna said that Flipkart has doubled its gross merchandising value (GMV) despite being shut for 53 days due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “The e-commerce business closed the year stronger than it started,” she added. GMV is the total value of merchandise sold on a platform. When asked about the focus for 2021, Krishnamurthy lined up grocery, fashion, and onboarding loyal customers through their subscription programme. In fashion, Flipkart has already made some moves, but the attractive grocery segment is going to be a challenge. Investments made by Flipkart in the apparel industry recently <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt; table-layout: fixed;"></colgroup></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Company </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Investment by Flipkart </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">USPL (Universal Sportsbiz Pvt Ltd) </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Undisclosed </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Aditya Birla Fashion Retail Limited </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,500 crore </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Arvind Fashions </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹260 crore </td></tr></tbody></table> In grocery, Flipkart has betting big on itself through Flipkart SuperMart and an investment in <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/walmart-and-flipkart-invest-in-ninjacart-again-to-bump-up-its-grocery-offerings-ahead-of-the-festive-season/articleshow/78617012.cms">Ninjacart.</a> “We are going to partner with the roughly million kirana stores in our ecosystem,” he said. Kirana is the Hindi word for mom-n-pop stores in India and is the latest buzzword in the race for online grocery retail where some of the richest and mightiest business houses in the country are making big investments. JioMart, which is Reliance Retail’s e-commerce debut, owned by India’s richest man Mukesh Ambani, is targeting 30 million merchants and he is backed by Facebook and WhatsApp for this project. The $100 billion Tata Group, one of India’s oldest and largest conglomerates, has reportedly closed a deal to acquire BigBasket, one of the early birds in India’s online grocery market. Meanwhile, Flipkart is also betting big on adtech (Advertising technology). Krishnamurthy said that Flipkart’s advertising platform is currently one of the top five in India today. Flipkart is strengthening its advertising and monetisation portfolio and has announced the launch of a custom built demand-side platform (DSP). It recently partnered with <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/advertising/ad-tech/news/flipkart-launches-commerce-focused-self-serve-demand-side-platform/articleshow/80919844.cms">MediaMath</a> to launch its demand-side platform. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/amazon-denies-dodging-indian-regulations-but-the-government-is-already-investigating-and-rivals-want-a-ban-on-jeff-bezos-company/articleshow/81088953.cms">Amazon denies dodging Indian regulations⁠ but the government is already investigating and rivals want a ban on Jeff Bezos’ company</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/entertainment/news/pewdiepies-lyrics-targeting-cocomelon-and-jk-rowling-that-may-have-gotten-youtube-angry-enough-to-pull-the-video-down/articleshow/81102941.cms">PewDiePie's lyrics targeting CoComelon and JK Rowling may have gotten YouTube angry enough to pull the video down</a>

Flipkart gets leaner with a $300 million Jabong write-off as CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy lists out the priorities for 2021

<ul><li>The three-year old <keyword id="8391587" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="scapic">Scapic</keyword> is a cloud-based platform which offers creation and publishing of Augmented Reality (AR) and 3D content.</li><li>Scapic’s team will join <keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword> and will help the e-commerce giant build deeper camera experiences, virtual storefronts and bring new opportunities for brand advertising on its platform.</li><li>Flipkart’s acquisition of Scapic joins its long list of recent acquisitions and investments as the company scales up operations while competition rises from the likes of Amazon and JioMart.</li></ul>Indian e-commerce giant Flipkart continues with its acquisition spree. The company has picked up a 100% stake in Augmented Reality company Scapic. The three-year old Scapic is a cloud-based platform that offers creation and publishing of Augmented Reality (AR) and 3D content. The company has clients across e-commerce and marketing. The startup had also recently won in the Industry 4.0 – AR category, during the National Startup Awards 2020. Founded by Sai Krishna V K &amp; Ajay P V, the Bengaluru-based company had earlier raised funding from Axilor, Speciale Invest, and Newfort Capital. “Today, we buy more online than we ever have, and it has only accelerated this year. Customers now require better visuals than ever before. Scapic is building visual technology that brings products to life using Augmented Reality and 3D. Advancements by the Scapic team in the field of AI, Computer Vision and AR have made this change possible,” said the founders in a statement. With the acquisition, Scapic’s team will join Flipkart and will help the e-commerce giant build deeper camera experiences, virtual storefronts and bring new opportunities for brand advertising on its platform. “As we make investments that focus on developing and nurturing the retail ecosystem, we are also committed to making our platform easier to navigate and richer for consumers in terms of content and experience. I welcome the Scapic team to Flipkart as we continue our efforts to provide deeper value to our customers,” said Flipkart CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy in a statement. Flipkart’s acquisition of Scapic joins its long list of recent acquisitions and investments as the company scales up operations while competition rises from the likes of Amazon and JioMart. Flipkart is also doubling down on user experience on the platform. With its acquisition of social gaming startup <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/flipkart-acquires-gaming-startup-mech-mocha-as-it-looks-to-tap-the-social-gaming-space-for-more-consumers/articleshow/79014466.cms">Mech Mocha</a> recently, the e-commerce platform was looking at ways to develop new and innovative formats to engage with users on its platform. Flipkart is on an investment spree <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt; table-layout: fixed;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Acquisitions by Flipkart </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Investment by Flipkart </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Mech Mocha </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Aditya Birla Fashion Retail Limited- ₹1,500 crore </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Walmart’s B2B business </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Arvind Fashions - ₹260 crore </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">USPL - undisclosed amount </td></tr></tbody></table> SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/makemytrip-shares-soar-as-covid-vaccine-progress-from-moderna-and-pfizer-spark-optimism-of-faster-travel-recovery/articleshow/79255315.cms">MakeMyTrip shares soar as COVID vaccine progress from Moderna and Pfizer spark optimism of faster travel recovery</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/flipkart-invests-in-uspl-fashion-house-that-has-brands-like-virat-kohli-wrogn-and-kriti-sanon-ms-taken/articleshow/79058747.cms">Flipkart makes its third fashion investment in five months — bets on USPL that houses brands like Virat Kohli's Wrogn and Kriti Sanon's Ms Taken</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/flipkart-acquires-gaming-startup-mech-mocha-as-it-looks-to-tap-the-social-gaming-space-for-more-consumers/articleshow/79014466.cms">Flipkart acquires gaming startup Mech Mocha as it looks to tap the social gaming space for more consumers</a>

Flipkart makes yet another acquisition – buys 100% stake in Augmented Reality startup Scapic

New Delhi, May 17 () Leading retailers have witnessed an increase in number of footfalls along with a "significant" jump in average purchase value in the third phase of the lockdown.According to industry players such as Metro Cash &amp; Carry, Lots Wholesale Solutions, Future Group and V-Mart Retail, as restrictions were eased more stores could open thereby increasing customer walk-ins, availability of popular FMCG products and high-value items.Some of the items that saw increased demand in the third phase of lockdown include dry fruits, frozen non-vegetarian products, personal care products - grooming, cold beverages and premium products.Supply of these products was disrupted in the previous two phases of the lockdown imposed from March 25 to control the spread of coronavirus pandemic."The footfalls have gone up by a third over the previous lockdown as restrictions are getting eased especially in Karnataka, Delhi and Telangana," Metro Cash &amp; Carry India MD &amp; CEO Arvind Mediratta told .He said there are several factors which impact store walk- ins, operational timings of the store along-with other factors in that particular city that play a role in store footfalls.Expressing similar views, Lots Wholesale Solutions Managing Director Tanit Chearavanont said as restrictions on movement are being eased, the number of footfalls is increasing in stores along with average purchase value."With every passing day and government providing some ease in movement, we have witnessed increased footfall at our stores largely from local kiranas and retailers during the lockdown and overall the average purchase value per customer has gone up," he said.Value fashion and lifestyle products retailer V-Mart Retail said the number of its operational stores pan-India has gone up, so also the number of customers."Earlier, one store has an average visit of around 40-50 customers which now has gone up to 130 to 150 per day. The basket size has also increased as people still have some tendency to hoard," said V-Mart Retail Chairman and MD Lalit Agarwal.According to him, in May and June, some marriages were scheduled. As restrictions were eased, low profile marriage happened in limited small groups and people have done some shoppings, which has turned the situation favourable.According to Mediratta, in the third phase availability of popular brands has increased and customers are returning back to them again preferring over the local and private labels."A major trend that we witnessed in the second phase was that customers were ready to switch to local brands in the same product category. If their favourite brands were not available, they were happy to transition to a private label brand," he said'"With the government easing out manufacturing and measures taken to open the economy, consumers have started to pick up brands again with availability improving and are demanding value added categories."Future Group President Food &amp; FMCG Kamaldeep Singh said that though the situation is still not close to normal but average purchase by a customer has gone up."Number of footfalls and shopping trips are still down but the average value of the bill is higher due to lesser number of visits by a customer," he said adding "customers are largely picking staples, food items and personal hygiene products".However, Singh also added that customers have still not started picking personal care products like deodorant, skin care, vanity and beauty products.Walmart India, which operates Best Price cash &amp; carry stores, witnessed a spike on demand of staples and hygiene products and expects a pent-up demand in the non-essential categories, which was opened in the third phase of the lockdown."With non-essential categories opening up, we expect some pent up demand in small kitchen and home appliances like irons, kettles, pressure cookers, and fans," said Anuj Singh, Chief Merchandising Officer, Best Price Walmart India.In the coming days retailers are hoping for a further easing of restriction as they continue to face some supply constraints as most of FMCG companies are not operating in full swing."We expect the government to ease restrictions in all the zones. The situation should normalise, and the demand &amp; supply should become more consistent," said Chearavanont.While Mediratta has suggested, the state authorities to work in unison with the central government so there is seamless functioning of businesses across sectors."The list of essential items should be further extended and all stores should be allowed to operate without any restrictions on timings," he added.India is presently going through an unprecedented lockdown from March 25 to prevent the spread of the coronavirus with the third phase ending on Sunday. KRH RKL MR

Consumers footfall increase, average basket value goes up at retail stores in lockdown 3.0

To provide same-day delivery for customers in Bengaluru, online marketplaces <keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword> and <keyword id="541988" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="SnapDeal">Snapdeal</keyword> could join hands with India Post's Bengaluru chapter, according to a senior official in the postal department. The technology capital is the first city where the India Post began delivering packages to customers of online marketplace <keyword id="18635" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Amazon">Amazon</keyword> on the day an order is placed. 

	"The national postal service is in informal talks with Flipkart and Snapdeal who have responded positively to the metro delivery service," BS Chandrashekhara, assistant director for business development at the Department of Posts, Karnataka Circle, told the Economic Times. 
 

	Since April, when the service for Amazon was launched, the department has been delivering an average of 2,000 orders daily in Bengaluru, according to postal officials. 
 

	Further, the Bengaluru experiment is a pilot project before the postal service can make plans for the rest of the country. "We are testing our own capabilities," said MS Ramanujan, chief post master general of Karnataka.
 

	A spokeswoman for Snapdeal told ET that while the company is collaborating with India Post extensively for delivery at multiple pincodes, "it's too early to speak about plans for metro delivery service." 
 According to a <keyword id="6361649" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Goldman-Sachs">Goldman Sachs</keyword> report, the Indian e-commerce market is expected to grow to $300 billion by 2030. India Post will compete in a market where specialist delivery firms like Ecom Express, Delhivery and <keyword id="2904466" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Go-Javas">Go Javas</keyword> are raising venture funding to expand operations. Meanwhile, experts are of the view that India Post with its deep reach even in small towns, can become a formidable competitor as a full-fledged logistics company. "The e-commerce companies which are struggling to reach out to all pincodes will also find India Post the most credible option for last mile deliveries," said Arvind Singhal, chairman and managing director of <keyword id="182686" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Technopak">Technopak</keyword>. Amazon which was the first to partner with the postal department has "integrated its own technology with the postal service for same-day delivery in Bengaluru," said Amit Agarwal, vice president and country manager of <keyword id="6354743" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Amazon-India">Amazon India</keyword>. Delhi and Mumbai are next in line for India Post's same-day-delivery, with limited pin-codes in Chennai and Coimbatore being covered at present. Fashion portal <keyword id="319719" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Myntra">Myntra</keyword> is also using India Post's cash-on-delivery service on a pilot basis in Bengaluru. 
	(Image: Indiatimes)

Flipkart, Snapdeal to expand its services in Bengaluru via postal network

What could be the better bargain period than this when India's three biggest online market places – <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Flipkart%2C+Snapdeal+">Flipkart, Amazon India and Snapdeal</a> - touted discounts of as much as 80% during this festive season? 
 Alas! The enthusiasm of early birds was dampened somewhat as there were few eye-popping deals on the first day on <keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword> or Amazon India on the latest gadgets and fashion brands. 
 
But brands were relieved that their efforts to rein in price cuts had worked, confirming the trend of <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=e-Commerce+firms+">e-Commerce firms</a> moving away from extravagant discounts. 
 
Instead they are focussing on better financials. 
 According to industry executives, deep discounts were available on online only and e-Commerce-focused products such as those made by <keyword id="71696" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Micromax">Micromax</keyword>, Onida, BPL and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Motorola">Motorola</a>, and on older models of gadgets and smartphones. 
 
And a similar trend was witnessed in <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=apparel+and+accessories">apparel and accessories</a>. This marked a sharp departure from last year, when the latest models of <keyword id="6354606" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="iPhone">iPhone</keyword>, <keyword id="173725" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Samsung-Galaxy">Samsung Galaxy</keyword> phones and Sony televisions were on sale. The e-Commerce firms offered maximum discounts on their in-house apparel brands where margins are twice that of other clothing. "None of our fresh merchandise is on discount except old or last-season stock," said J Suresh, chief executive of Arvind Lifestyle Brands, which sells brands such as Gap, US Polo, Wrangler and Calvin Klein. 
 Lets’ know how the big three – <keyword id="541988" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="SnapDeal">Snapdeal</keyword>, Flipkart and Amazon India – planned to rob customers this year! 
 
1. Conservative Approach: These companies are more conservative this year, ordering about 1.2 times the normal stock for the discount period unlike last year when they were targeting to grow sales by five times. "The focus is surely on margins and profitability," Suresh said. 
 
The chief of a leading shoe brand said deep discounting of 60-80%, which is usually offered during end-of-season sales by the ecommerce firms, was missing on the first day. "The madness was not there and even I was expecting good deals on international brands for my personal purchase where discounts were hardly 4-10%," he said, requesting anonymity. The absence of deep discounts on the hottest items is good news for brick and mortar retailers, who have been suffering on account of lower prices online. 
 
2. The Big E-tailing Rivalry: After Flipkart announced the October13-17 campaign, Amazon and Snapdeal announced similar exercises—a point that a company executive brought up. "Random thought: Checked out TOI. Looks like we set the dates for when others do their festival sales :)! Go BBD!," Flipkart chief product officer Punit Soni tweeted. Rohit Bansal, cofounder of Snapdeal, tweeted: "Looks like India has chosen @snapdeal as the app of their choice this festive season!" 
 
Flipkart said it "saw 25 items sold per second." The company said 10 lakh products were sold in the first 10 hours with 6 million visits from across the country. "This is pushing the limits, the volumes are much higher than last year," said Naman Sarawagi, cofounder and CEO of FindYogi, a chat-based shopping assistance app. 
 
On Monday, Snapdeal said that it sold five mobile phones every second as it racked up total sales of $100 million. Amazon India claimed that the first day of the festive sales was the biggest day in its history, four times bigger than the peak of last Diwali. Traffic from mobile was over 70% and lakhs of new customers came from cities like Aurangabad, Malappuram, Dhanbad, Kannur, Tiruchirappalli, Jamshedpur and others. 
 3. Ambulance On Standby: Most visitors were from cities like <keyword id="6354321" type="CITY" weightage="40" keywordseo="Bengaluru">Bengaluru</keyword>, Delhi and Chennai. Ludhiana, Lucknow and Bhopal were among the top cities from non-metros, said Flipkart, where employees have been working round the clock to keep systems stable. Flipkart set up shuttle services for employees to be picked up and dropped and even put an ambulance and masseurs on standby. 
 
"With over 20 million visits from across the country on the first day, the fashion sale has been a big hit amongst our customers. For electronics - it will be even bigger on 15th October as we have lined up a range of smartphone launches for our customers from brands like <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Google">Google</a>, <keyword id="11148" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Motorola">Motorola</keyword>, <keyword id="6357456" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Huawei">Huawei</keyword>, Intex and Micromax. All these new launches will have aggressive launch and exchange offers along with exciting bank discounts," a Flipkart spokesperson said. 
 
About 1.5 million shoppers bought goods worth over $100 million from Flipkart during the sale in 2014 but the site stuttered as a large number of people sought to access the site. This year's Billion Days sale is expected to be five times in size, according to one Flipkart employee who requested anonymity. 
 Amazon and Flipkart started their festive season sales on Tuesday while Snapdeal kicked things off on Monday. Discounts were attractive on online-exclusive smartphone brands such as Motorola, <keyword id="874458" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Xiaomi">Xiaomi</keyword>, Yu Yuphoria and <keyword id="2210217" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="oneplus">OnePlus</keyword> 2. Price cuts were also offered on baby products, general merchandise, home decor and personal care products. The sale will carry on until the end of the week. 
 
Flipkart said there had been a surge in app downloads in anticipation of the sale. 
 
"It's great to see 1.6 million app installs in the last two days, which is a great indicator that India has been preparing well for The Big Billion Days," said Mukesh Bansal, head of commerce platform at Flipkart. The sale was off to a relatively glitch-free start. Flipkart, which was hit by glitches last year owing to heavy traffic, has staggered its app-only discounted sales over five days, across various categories such as fashion, home appliances, electronics and books. 
 
(Image: Indiatimes)

No extravagant discounts from Flipkart or Amazon this year!  They are focusing on stronger financials instead

<div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right"><div class="image on-image">REUTERS/Anindito Mukherjee </div></div>
TAKE Arvind Kejriwal's talk of "revolution" seriously. Back in June, crammed with this correspondent into a tiny Suzuki car in east Delhi, he predicted electoral triumph for his Aam Aadmi ("common man") anti-graft volunteers. It sounded fanciful at the time. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is just a few months old. Even as recently as late November Delhi's chief minister for the past 15 years, Sheila Dikshit, was roundly dismissing Mr Kejriwal as an irrelevance.
No longer. Thanks to Mr Kejriwal, Mrs Dikshit is out on her ear this week. Results from elections in five states delivered mostly misery for the ruling Congress party. In the national capital region (in effect a state) the AAP annihilated it. Mr Kejriwal himself toppled Mrs Dikshit in a constituency that she thought was cast-iron, crammed as it is with babus (civil servants) and presumed staunch Congress loyalists. Across Delhi Congress won just eight of 70 assembly seats, its worst-ever result.
The AAP, with a broom as its party symbol, swept to 28 seats, a stunning debut for a group of political amateurs. They had raised funds with text messages sent to millions who had earlier backed the anti-corruption protests of Anna Hazare, a Gandhian activist. In Delhi 120,000 unpaid volunteers knocked on doors to discuss inflation and graft. Two populist promises, to halve household electricity bills and provide 700 litres of free water, went down well. Word also spread in old-fashioned ways: every motorised rickshaw in the city seemed to carry a poster of a broom.
For now Delhi, a city of 16m and <keyword id="3658" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="India">India</keyword>'s wealthiest, lacks a government. The AAP squeezed in second behind the established Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which got 32 seats, just short of a majority. Neither is ready to form a minority administration, nor to cut a power-sharing deal, with a national election only a few months away (by May at the latest). So Delhi will probably need to vote again next year.
Can Mr Kejriwal's revolution break out beyond the capital? He has the ambition. He has studied Barack Obama's internet fund-raising, the appeal of a populist ex-cricketer, Imran Khan, to young Pakistanis, and how Arab spring protesters communicated through social media. But he is also aware how difficult it is to turn a protest movement into a political one. The charisma of Mr Hazare, for example, would have been a huge asset for the party. But he keeps his distance, calling all politics irredeemably filthy.
The limits to the AAP's potential are clear enough. Average incomes in Delhi are three times the national level, hinting at how the capital's common folk have different worries to poorer rural ones. Mr Kejriwal could do well in India's Hindi-speaking centre and north, notably in his native Haryana state, next to Delhi. But farther afield fewer would recognise him, despite his claim to have a network of offices in "every nook and corner" of the country.
Delhi is also unusual in that the fragmentation of politics seen in other states has come late to the capital region. It has never before had a party to garner non-Congress, non-BJP votes. Many other states have big third parties that dominate locally without securing a wider appeal. That leaves less space for newcomers such as the AAP to fill.
Yet the AAP will be relevant. The BJP expects to win the coming general election, but it needs strong support from middle-class city-dwellers who are most frustrated with Congress over corruption, a slowing economy and inflation. A strong showing for Mr Kejriwal complicates things. In Delhi the BJP would have won handsomely had it not been for the new party. Earlier polls suggested that many Aam Aadmi supporters would switch to the BJP for the national vote, but at the time it was assumed that the new party was not ready for a national push. After this week's events, who knows what is possible?

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