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<ul><li>The debate is over the incoming rules on e-commerce.</li><li>Some of the most sticky issues in the rules include ‘fallback liability’ and the crackdown on flash sales and deep discounts.</li><li>Online retailers argue that the platform cannot be held responsible for deeds of the seller.</li><li>Check out the latest news and updates on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/">Business Insider</a>. </li></ul>The tussle between e-commerce giants ⁠— both existing ones like <keyword id="18635" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon">Amazon</keyword> as well as the ones like the over $120 billion Tata Group that is still building its online retail vertical ⁠— and India’s incoming regulations has burst out of closed doors. "When I see Tata Sons that they're objecting to some consumer benefit laws or regulations that I'm bringing in, then frankly it hurts," India’s Commerce and Industry Minister <keyword id="6355222" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="piyush-goyal">Piyush Goyal</keyword> <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/tatas-objecting-to-consumer-benefit-laws-hurts-goyal/articleshow/85283877.cms">reportedly</a> said on August 12. The comments were made during the event hosted by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and has since been reportedly removed. Goyal was referring to pushback from the e-commerce players against the <a href="https://prsindia.org/files/parliamentry-announcement/2021-07-21/CommentseCommerce_Rules2020_upto_21July2021.pdf">incoming norms</a>, which the government says are intended to protect the consumers in e-commerce. The deadline for seeking comments on the rules ended on July 21. While the rules at the centre of this debate are called ‘Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020,’ Goyal’s comments largely reflect the fear of traders’ community, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) and Delhi Vyapar Mahasangh, lobbies that have been revolting against online retailers, particularly, foreign players like Amazon and Flipkart (now owned by US-based Walmart). “Six crore small shops, related to retail business and employing almost 12 crore people, are being threatened now,” he said. These are some of the rules that are making online retailers like Amazon, Flipkart and the 150-year old Tata Group ⁠— which is trying to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/tata-tryst-with-e-grocery-starts-with-a-billion-dollar-acquisition-of-bigbasket-heres-why-it-could-be-a-sweet-deal-for-both/articleshow/81478849.cms">build its online retail empire</a> with the acquisition of startups like <keyword id="964794" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="BigBasket">BigBasket</keyword>, 1mg and curefit ⁠— nervous. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; table-layout: fixed; width: 468pt;"></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;">Rule proposed </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;">E-commerce players’ argument </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;">Flash sales are not allowed </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;">Need more clarity </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;">Fallback liability </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;">The platform can’t be penalised for a seller’s act </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;">Deep discounts </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;">Taking away discounts hurts consumers </td></tr></tbody></table> “Fallback liability” makes platforms like Amazon and Flipkart, or any other platform for that matter, liable to compensate the consumer if the seller registered with the entity fails to deliver the goods or services exactly in the way described on the platform. “The concept of "Fall Back liability" should be done away with because it dilutes the intermediary safe harbour under the provisions of the IT Act as well as the arm’s length requirements provided under the FDI [foreign direct investment] Policy," industry body Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) had <a href="https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/startup/consumer-protection-rules-customers-to-get-negatively-impacted-say-e-com-firms-seeking-changes-in-proposed-rules-7204161.html">said</a> earlier. Online retailers are also under the scanner on various other issues Another issue that Amazon is facing is the antitrust probe for having exclusive tie-ups with makers of products like smartphones as well as for offering deep discounts. The Supreme Court of India, last week, <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/sc-upholds-cci-probe-into-amazon-flipkart/articleshow/85197369.cms">allowed the probe</a> by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to continue and told the companies to join the probe in four weeks. The Minister, Goyal, cheered this. “These companies even tried with their legal tricks to halt the investigation against them but it’s with extreme pleasure that I inform you that on the anniversary of ‘Quit India Movement’, the Supreme Court has quashed their plea. The apex court decided that CCI should investigate them and the fraudulent and unfair trade practices used by the companies as informed by the government and small shopkeepers to CCI.” Other outfits rail against online giants The e-commerce rules have been creating a lot of furore in India. Other political outfits like the Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) have <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/rss-affiliate-suggests-changes-in-consumer-protection-e-commerce-rules/articleshow/84613325.cms">argued</a> that the rules are protecting only those who sell goods via online retail. The SJM wants the laws to protect service providers ⁠— the likes of hairdressers, plumbers and electricians who are employed via platforms like Urban Company. SJM is affiliated to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which is the ideological parent for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that is in power at the government in New Delhi. SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/eruditus-is-indias-fourth-edtech-unicorn-valued-at-3-2-billion/articleshow/85267050.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Eruditus is India’s fourth edtech unicorn, valued at $3.2 billion</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/travel-app-ixigo-files-for-a-1600-crore-ipo/articleshow/85292327.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Travel app ixigo files for a ₹1,600 crore IPO</a>

It’s not just Amazon and Flipkart ⁠— here’s why even the Tata Group is making Piyush Goyal angry

<ul><li>The Softbank-backed startup is planning to head for a listing in the US through a special purpose acquisition company.</li><li><keyword id="2466939" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Grofers">Grofers</keyword> is now seeking a valuation of $1 billion.</li><li>Here’s a deep dive into Grofers’ business.</li></ul>India’s grocery market is estimated to be $600 billion and less than 5% of it is organised, according to HDFC Securities. Grofers has a tiny sliver of that small pie. It is one of the top 10 organised retailers in India but it’s still a tough space to compete in. Who leads in any competitive business also decides who gets a bulk of the investors’ money. In that, Softbank-backed grocery startup Grofers is running against <keyword id="8506093" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Jiomart">JioMart</keyword>, backed by the mighty Mukesh Ambani (Asia’s second richest man), and an early bird like <keyword id="964794" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="BigBasket">BigBasket</keyword>, a unicorn which the $100 billion Tata Group is in talks with for a majority stake. <div type="image" title="Grocery." msid="80874973" hostid="261"></div> Just as tight the competition is in everyday business, raising money may be as difficult as a spate of initial public offerings (IPO) from the retail ⁠— both online and offline⁠— space are in the works, at different stages. Therefore, as <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-11/softbank-backed-grofers-said-to-weigh-listing-via-u-s-spac-deal?srnd=technology-vp&amp;sref=zNmRQ0gk">reports suggest</a>, Grofers may opt for a listing in the US through a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). The reason why a SPAC is better than an IPO is best described by Don Butler, Managing Director at Thomvest Ventures. “An IPO is basically a company looking for money, while a SPAC is money looking for a company,” he recently <a href="https://news.crunchbase.com/news/spac-vs-traditional-ipo-investors-see-benefits-of-blank-check-companies/">said</a>. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="What is SPAC?" comment="subhead" text="What is SPAC?">What is SPAC?</cmsannotation> SPAC companies are generally formed as “blank cheque” firms with the specific purpose to raise capital through a market debut to acquire another company. Grofers could either raise money from investors by selling shares directly. Or, it could sell to a company that is already listed. When a deal is formed through SPAC, the companies have two years to complete the acquisition. If the deal fails to go through, the SPAC will have to return all money to the investors. Through a SPAC deal, companies don’t have to go through the traditional paperwork hassles needed for an IPO. There are many advantages of opting for a SPAC deal, first the company (here Grofers) would get direct expertise from a company that has been in the business of taking firms to the public markets, and SPACS also acquires companies at a premium, giving more value to the initial investors in the company. And that’s how the Softbank-backed Grofers is now seeking a valuation of $1 billion. The startup had last raised funding in May 2018 when it got a $220 million cheque from SoftBank and was valued around $700 million. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt; table-layout: fixed;"></colgroup></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;">Lead investors in Grofers </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;">SoftBank Vision Fund </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;">Sequoia Capital </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;">Bennett Coleman </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;">Abu Dhabi Capital Group </td></tr></tbody></table> Since then, the startup has had several talks for funding and acquisitions with rival companies like Zomato, Paytm Mall, none of which have worked out. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Some of the world’s richest people are competing for a slice of India’s growing online retail" comment="subhead" text="Some of the world’s richest people are competing for a slice of India’s growing online retail">Some of the world’s richest people are competing for a slice of India’s growing online retail</cmsannotation> India’s grocery segment which is a $545 billion market, according to Goldman Sachs. It has several players eyeing for the highest market share. Grofers, which until recently enjoyed being in a mostly two-player market, suddenly has many more competitors to watch out for. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt; table-layout: fixed;"></colgroup></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;">Who Grofers is pitted against </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;">India’s richest man Mukesh Ambani’s JioMart </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;">World’s richest man Jeff Bezos’s Amazon </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;">One of the world’s biggest retailers Walmart-owned 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;">One of India’s biggest conglomerates Tata which is looking to acquire BigBasket and is keen on creating a superapp </td></tr></tbody></table> <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="A deep dive into Grofers’ business" comment="subhead" text="A deep dive into Grofers’ business">A deep dive into Grofers’ business</cmsannotation> Grofers in the last financial year reported an annualized Gross Merchandising Volume of $600 million. Even while Grofers in January 2020 had said that it had achieved breakeven in cities like Delhi and Kolkata, it continued to bleed red in its overall business. As much as 75% of its revenue comes from the top four cities alone. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt; table-layout: fixed;"></colgroup></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;">Grofers </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 </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;">Loss </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;">₹176.7 crore </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;">₹637.4 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;">FY19 </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;">₹83.6 crore </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;">₹448 crore </td></tr></tbody></table>Source: Tofler During the COVID-19 pandemic, tables turned for Grofers as it did for other e-grocery startups like BigBasket, JioMart etc. In a Goldman Sachs report from November 2020, Grofers had said that its revenues were up by 85% from April 2020, as the demand for online grocery grew. “...it has been proﬁtable (contribution margin) on every order delivered since the start of COVID-19,” said the report. Snapshot of Grofers <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt; table-layout: fixed;"></colgroup></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;">Monthly transacting users </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;">Monthly Active Users </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;">Basket size </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;">Presence </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;">1.5 million </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;">8-10 million </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;">$28 </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;">29 cities </td></tr></tbody></table>Source: Goldman Sachs <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Betting on private labels" comment="subhead" text="Betting on private labels">Betting on private labels</cmsannotation> Grofers has also been betting big on its private labels business, with the aim of running its business purely with its own brands. In April 2020, the company said that it would pump in $15 million into its private label business. And it made business sense as private labels are high gross margin products for the company, as much as 20% higher in consumer packaged goods and 5% higher in staples, according to the Goldman Sachs report. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/spicejet-and-indigo-stocks-take-off-as-a-2-hour-flight-could-now-cost-up-to-13000/articleshow/80873865.cms">SpiceJet and IndiGo stocks take off as a 2-hour flight could now cost up to ₹13,000</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/chaos-at-upgrad-mass-resignations-pour-in-as-angry-employees-refuse-to-relocate-instantly/articleshow/80824504.cms">Chaos at upGrad⁠— mass resignations pour in as angry employees refuse to relocate instantly</a>

Here’s why Grofers may allow an American 'blank cheque' firm to buy it out instead of fighting Ambani and BigBasket for IPO

<ul><li>The e-commerce debut of <keyword id="10926" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Reliance">Reliance</keyword>, is being touted by analysts as the real digital powerhouse for the RIL family. </li><li>Having started with a beta launch in December 2019, <keyword id="8506093" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Jiomart">JioMart</keyword> officially rolled out to users across the country in May, 2020. </li><li>JioMart went into a fast expansion mode during the coronavirus lockdown in India and has managed to gain an early mover advantage in the country’s smaller towns.</li></ul>JioMart – <keyword id="3820" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mukesh-Ambani">Mukesh Ambani</keyword>’s ambitious e-commerce bet has taken off and how! Having started with a beta launch in December 2019, JioMart officially rolled out to users across the country in May, 2020 and it already has a million daily active users, and 2.3 million active users every month, according to a JPMorgan report. The same report said that, JioMart has already crossed BigBasket and Grofers in terms of daily active users and falls behind Swiggy. Business Insider reached out to BigBasket and Grofers for their comments regarding their daily active users, both the players declined to comment. India’s online grocery segment: The players <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;">Launch date </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;">Presence (no. of cities) </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;">App downloads </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;">Amazon Fresh </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;">August, 2019 </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;">9 </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;">314 million (for Amazon) </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;">Flipkart Supermart </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;">November, 2017 </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;">5 </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;">361 million (for 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;">Swiggy Stores </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;">February, 2019 </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;">30 </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;">89 million (for Swiggy) </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;">BigBasket </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;">October, 2011 </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;">26 </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;">34 million </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;">Grofers </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;">December, 2013 </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;">30 </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;">30 million </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;">JioMart </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;">December, 2019 </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;">200+ </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;">4 million </td></tr></tbody></table>As of December 8, 2020. Source: JPMorgan While other entrenched players like Big Basket and Grofers, who have been around for much longer, still have 7-8 times more app downloads, the rise of JioMart in the last six months only reflects the speed at which Ambani has tried to push his <keyword id="436047" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ecommerce">ecommerce</keyword> dream. Since its launch, in every three downloads of any online groceries app, two of them have been the one from the house of Reliance Industries (RIL). <div type="image" title="Jiomart downloads." msid="79922658" hostid="261"></div> Even the mightiest need to hustle sometimes JioMart in India sees competition from many players who have existed and dominated the Indian e-commerce market for a long time – including the likes of Amazon and Flipkart. And so, as Ambani, Asia’s richest man, threw his hat into this ring, he decided to go all out: both in the big cities of India and beyond. JioMart operates with an <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/heres-what-gives-jiomart-an-edge-over-its-competitors-according-to-goldman-sachs/articleshow/79054698.cms">omnichannel</a> flow where it has tied up with kirana stores (mom-and-pop stores) and also uses inventory from Reliance Retail outlets. Ambani’s e-commerce bet made a soft launch in December 2019 in select areas of Thane, Navi Mumbai, and Kalyan. But as the coronavirus lockdown began and the opportunities in e-grocery became more evident, JioMart was quick to act and expanded to over 200 cities. This fast growth across India has given JioMart an early-mover advantage in India’s smaller towns, say analysts at JP Morgan. Given the progress of JioMart in the first year, analysts at JPMorgan peg that Reliance’s e-commerce business may earn an annual revenue of over $59 billion and the net worth may hit $145 billion in the next ten years. A Goldman Sachs report from November 2020 had pegged this omnichannel capability ⁠— using different channels for distribution, both online and offline ⁠— as the reason for JioMart’s growth. “India has 10 million kirana stores, which account for 90% of grocery retail in the country. JioMart has already launched in more than 200 cities, leveraging Reliance Retail’s store network, with kirana partnerships across 20 cities,” said the Goldman Sachs report. JioMart is not just stretching far and wide, it’s also building strength via partnerships and acquisitions Ambani is not just going for geographic expansion but he is also on a spending spree to boost JioMart’s offerings to its customers. According to JPMorgan, JioMart’s stock keeping units (SKU) is only second to Big Basket. However, the comparison didn’t include players like Flipkart, DMart and other new entrants like Swiggy and Zomato. JioMart, with access to the deep pockets of one of the world’s richest man – Mukesh Ambani, has managed to successfully partner up with another of the world’s richest man – Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. Facebook pumped in $5.7 billion into Reliance Jio in April 2020, with WhatsApp’s integration with JioMart being a prime focus of the deal. It’s set to be a win-win for both Ambani and Zuckerberg – where Reliance can take advantage of WhatsApp’s 400 million user base to acquire more customers. On the other hand, WhatsApp Pay, Facebook’s debut in the payments segment, will benefit from integrating with JioMart for payments. Another early acquisition made by the company was that of the Mumbai-based Grab-a-Grub. In 2019, Reliance pumped in $15 million for 83% stake in the hyperlocal delivery startup. Reliance has also acquired online pharmacy company <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/with-reliance-buying-netmeds-and-pharmeasy-merging-with-medlife-amazon-and-flipkart-are-in-for-a-tougher-competition-than-they-would-like/articleshow/77625512.cms">NetMeds</a>, picked up a stake in online lingerie retailer Zivame, and online furniture retailer <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/retail/news/reliance-retail-acquires-urban-ladder-for-182-crore-at-a-sixth-of-the-startups-peak-valuation-in-2018/articleshow/79230550.cms">Urban Ladder</a>, all of which could further bolster its e-commerce foothold. The acquisition of Kishore Biyani’s Future Retail for almost ₹25,000 crore also gives JioMart access to BigBazaar stores across the country as well. However, Ambani and Biyani are in a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/amazon-got-an-operation-successful-patient-dead-verdict-lawyers-say-the-delhi-high-court-order-is-actually-a-win-for-kishore-biyani-and-future-group/articleshow/79842995.cms">legal battle with Amazon</a> that has challenged the deal both in India and abroad. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/amazon-got-an-operation-successful-patient-dead-verdict-lawyers-say-the-delhi-high-court-order-is-actually-a-win-for-kishore-biyani-and-future-group/articleshow/79842995.cms">Amazon got an “operation successful, patient dead” verdict ⁠— Lawyers say the Delhi High Court order is actually a win for Kishore Biyani and Future Group</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/banks/news/rbi-warns-people-against-unauthorized-digital-lending-apps-that-promise-quick-loans/articleshow/79919474.cms">India’s central bank warns people against unauthorized digital lending apps that promise quick loans</a>

Mukesh Ambani is taking e-tail by storm⁠ — JioMart already has more daily active users than BigBasket and Grofers

<ul><li>In an interview with Business Insider, Anant Goel, CEO and co-founder, <keyword id="4085901" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Milkbasket">Milkbasket</keyword> talks about why he doesn’t want to offer discounts to his customers. </li><li>The company is averaging 75,000 orders a day with over 2,250,000 in a month. </li><li>It aims to hit $100 million run rate by the end of the current financial year.</li></ul><keyword id="2709620" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="grocery-delivery">Grocery delivery</keyword> startup Milkbasket has its head in the game. It is forecasting to hit $100 million in revenue by the end of the current financial year. Today, the Indian grocery space is crowded with multiple players and newly turned unicorns like <keyword id="964794" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="BigBasket">BigBasket</keyword>, soonicorns like Grofers. Even food delivery unicorns like Swiggy too are entering the sector. Milkbasket insists on growing without discounts However, while all of these new and old startups are trying to offer discounts and faster delivery options to lure consumers, Milkbasket is adamant. It doesn’t believe in discounts and has only a single slot delivery at 7 am in the morning. “That’s how you build a business, not by burning money. For any B2C business, you can always spoil the customer, but can you make money while doing it? Is it sustainable? We have always tried to strike the balance,” Anant Goel, CEO and co-founder, Milkbasket told Business Insider. So, the four-year-old startup has built a loyal consumer base, without having to give in to the new age trends. It serves 1.5 lakh households across 5 cities (Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon, Ghaziabad and Bengaluru). The company is averaging 75,000 orders in a day with over 2,250,000 in a month. “We now aim to hit $100 million run rate by the end of the current financial year, we are currently at $60 million,” said Goel. Investors aid Milkbasket’s growth story It has also been a good year for Milkbasket. There was a possible funding from Sachin Bansal’s BACQ Acquisitions. However Milkbasket and Bansal’s firm had issued a joint statement they weren’t going ahead with it. Later, it closed its series B round with $12.7 million. The series B investment includes $10.5 million led by Unilever Ventures and participation from Mayfield India, Kalaari Capital, and Blume Ventures and few Indian family offices and Innoven Capital. And Goel credits it all to doing things differently. “Lots of competition has come in, which was not there earlier or were smaller till last year. Competition in new shapes and forms with big money, chasing us and our customers,” Goel said with a laugh and added, “But we are sure about our model – a sustainable supply chain that can deliver groceries to you.” Busting the myth Goel also busts a myth for us. Contrary to popular belief, Milkbasket has always been into groceries and not just milk. But its name makes people think otherwise. However, the name too has a direct connect to their business model. “When we started grocery in 2015, there were about 200 startups in the space. We asked customers what they want from online grocery startups and they all said discounts. But we are not here to give away discounts. Milkbasket the name came about because milk is a commodity for which you don’t ask discounts, instead you pay more to get it delivered to your house and you are happy to do so,” he said.

Milkbasket refuses to bow down to discounts – aims to hit $100 million by March

<ul><li>The <keyword id="30334" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="acquisition">acquisition</keyword> talks come as Tata is set to be working on its own Super App for which it has reportedly signed a deal with grocery retail platform BigBasket for a 68% stake.</li><li>The news of the possible acquisition drove JD’s stocks to ₹943, up by 7%.</li><li>In October 2020, JD had said that it was set to launch its own B2B (business to business) marketplace called JD Mart.</li></ul>The salt-to-aviation conglomerate <keyword id="6355725" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="tata-group">Tata Group</keyword> is in talks with <keyword id="6436290" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="just-dial">Just Dial</keyword>, the 24-year old local discovery platform, as a part of its digital push, reported <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/technology/tata-digital-in-initial-talks-with-just-dial-for-e-commerce-play/articleshow/81383870.cms">ET</a>. The report said that the group is in early talks with Just Dial regarding its latest e-commerce bet – JD Mart. The acquisition talks come as Tata is set to be working on its own Super App, for which it has already <a href="https://www.timesnownews.com/business-economy/companies/article/tata-group-to-buy-68-stake-in-e-grocer-bigbasket/721028">reportedly</a> signed a deal with grocery retail platform BigBasket for a 68% stake. Similarly, it could enter into a strategic alliance with Just Dial as well. The news of the possible acquisition drove Just Dial Ltd’s stocks to ₹943, up by 7.38% at 1.50 pm on Monday. In October 2020, Just Dial had said that it was set to launch its own B2B (business to business) marketplace called JD Mart. The potential and excitement for Just Dial’s new platform comes with the fact that the company already has a strong foothold in the market and a loyal user base. According to a report by financial services firm UBS, the company will be able to leverage its already existing 140 million quarterly unique users and 100,000 paid B2B subscribers to sell JD Mart. “We think Just Dial has developed a superior platform on the backdrop of an interactive user interface along with robust depth and breadth of B2B product offerings. JD's core strength is its large sales force (9,000), which should aid monetizing the new platform,” said the UBS report from October, 2020. JD Mart finds competition from the country’s oldest e-commerce platform IndiaMart, which has had an unchallenged run for 24 years. Interestingly, Tata was <a href="https://www.livemint.com/companies/start-ups/tatas-in-talks-to-buy-stake-in-indiamart-report-11602742923779.html">reportedly</a> in talks with IndiaMart as well earlier. However, in an exchange filing IndiaMart had categorically denied that it had not had any discussions with Tata Group. Meanwhile, JD Mart is making space for itself. The company, which had set aside ₹110 crore for marketing and advertising of JD Mart, has signed up to be a ‘Co-Presenting Sponsor’ of the Indian Premier League-14 (IPL 2021), which will be held in the months of April and May. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/oyo-vs-zo-zostel-claims-victory-while-the-ritesh-agarwal-led-firm-says-theres-still-room-to-win/articleshow/81386851.cms">OYO vs Zo – Zostel claims victory while the Ritesh Agarwal-led firm says there’s still room to win</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/the-510-crore-ipo-of-easemytrip-is-now-open-for-public-subscription-/articleshow/81387576.cms">Here is why analysts maintain a bullish mood for the ₹510 crore IPO of bootstrapped online travel aggregator EaseMyTrip</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/google-ceo-sundar-pichai-announces-a-series-of-initiatives-on-womens-day/articleshow/81388483.cms">Google announces a series of initiatives on Women’s day – a $25 million fund, support for one million female entrepreneurs in India and a new feature on Google Maps</a>

Tata dials up another acquisition talk – with India’s discovery platform Just Dial, whose  stock is up by 7%

Krishnan <keyword id="6356252" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ganesh">Ganesh</keyword>, has played a lot of roles in his life; from an engineer, to an entrepreneur, to now a venture builder, and his life has been nothing short of an trial. While his shoes have been too big to fill and as they keep changing, he is currently pioneering a unique model with Growth Story in India, which is probably only made popular by Rocket Internet in the country. GrowthStory is the venture-builder platform that Ganesh and his wife, Meena set up in 2011 which has promoted some of India's most disruptive start-ups including Portea Medical, Big Basket, Fresh Menu, Home Lane, AcadGild, HouseJoy, Social Frontier and many more. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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This model is unique due to the fact that while Ganesh and Meena come up with entrepreneurial ideas, they hire executives to pull it off. It is not primarily "investment" only, but where GrowthStory is the "promoter," but where the Partners are often the originators of the idea, work to get a founding team in place, drive fund raising early in the game, work closely with founders to scale the venture, guide strategic direction et al. This ‘express’ entrepreneurship that the power couple pull through is extraordinary and the back- story to it is a roller coaster that, you can’t forget. Early life and career Ganesh’s father died in an accident when he was just nine years old and as the eldest of three siblings, he felt the need to set an example. His mother was a hard-working government servant and bought them up to the best of her capabilities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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So Krishnan, became a mechanical engineer passed out from Delhi College of Engineering, and even got a post graduate degree from IIM before realizing that he didn’t want to be an engineer or just an MBA graduate. Ganesh credits his entrepreneurial trials to <keyword id="44903" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Shiv-Nadar">Shiv Nadar</keyword>, under whose guidance he experienced different business function, “I worked for five years in various functions and also as executive assistant to Shiv Nadar. My first venture started in 1990, a company called IT&amp;T where me and my friends pooled in money to get it started,” he told Business Insider. He ran the company till 1998 and remained the largest shareholder and director of the company till 2003 when it was sold to iGate. He went back to the corporate life but after two-years stint went back to entrepreneurship with his second business venture called CustomerAsset with Meena and another partner. It was later acquired by ICICI Bank in 2002 and Ganesh made $ 20 million for his stake in the company.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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In 2003 he stumbled upon an innovative new company called Marketics which was started by IIT and IIM graduates. Ganesh was approached for investment, mentoring and guidance. This company was also sold off to WNS, for $65 million where only half a million dollars were invested in this business without venture capital funding. Then Ganesh again started his own business with TutorVista in 2006 which was bought out completely by Pearson for Rs. 1000 crore. His multiple hits have led him to be where he is, but that isn’t without the missus by his side. When the the last acquisition happened, Ganesh and Meena decided to take the hard road and continue their entrepreneurship journey albeit this time, differently. "Only 5 per cent of start ups succeed and Ninety-five per cent end up failing. I see still young entrepreneurs after starting a company against all the odds. I'm addicted to fueling that until I can," says Krishnan when asked about why his family still makes risky businesses instead of just ‘settling down’. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The Perfect Pairing When it comes to Meena and Krishnan Ganesh, their complementary skill sets have given fuel to the train that is Growth Story. Professionally, Meena is more lauded as the CEO of <keyword id="6398216" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tesco">Tesco</keyword>,No.2 at <keyword id="10387" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Microsoft">Microsoft</keyword> and now CEO at Portea, but Ganesh is the visonary that knows they can achieve so much together. As co-founders and life partners, they know that team work is the key to making a venture start and keep it running.

Exclusive: K. Ganesh Made BigBasket and Portea Medical Blockbusters in India, and This is his Unique Life-story

Nearly a decade after entering India and failing to make any waves due to resistance from the government, <keyword id="80487" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="walmart">Walmart</keyword> is making a renewed push in the country by focussing on it’s fast growing e-commerce market. The world’s largest retailer is taking a 77% stake in <keyword id="6354742" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword>, an Indian e-commerce giant, by buying $14 billion of stock from it’s investors and pumping in $2 billion of fresh funds. With the deal inked, now the work begins for Walmart. In addition to boosting Flipkart’s logistics and supply chain network, it has a number of complementary plans for the Indian market. According to a <a href="https://news.walmart.com/2018/05/09/walmart-to-invest-in-flipkart-group-indias-innovative-ecommerce-company">press release on its website</a>, Walmart plans to create jobs, support small businesses and increase farmer incomes. Here’s how things should go from here. Direct and local procurement of <keyword id="389479" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="groceries">groceries</keyword> Flipkart can’t focus on clothes and electronics forever. And Walmart derives half its global sales from groceries. Like <keyword id="18635" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon">Amazon</keyword> and the Alibaba-funded BigBasket, the US retailer has big plans in the online groceries space in India - a segment which is widely predicted to drive India’s e-commerce growth. Currently, farm-to-table supply chains in India suffer from wastage and a lack of investment. Walmart is expected to source fresh groceries directly from farmers and small businesses and minimise wastage by adding a cold storage component to its supply chains. This could also include investments in collection centres, and quality control facilities. In doing so, Walmart will help farmers cater to a wider customer base. It already runs a number of <a href="http://www.wal-martindia.in/2017/11/30/walmart-foundation-supports-market-readiness-for-farmers-in-india-with-a-grant-of-close-to-2-million">market readiness projects</a> in India centred on back-end infrastructure support, increasing access to credit for farmers and training on international food standards. Making ‘kirana’ stores go digital In its press release, Walmart said it would, “partner with kirana owners and members to help modernize their retail practices and adopt digital payment technologies”. Ekart, Flipkart’s supply chain arm, is already sourcing and distributing products through thousands of kiranas. Kiranas refer to small mom-and-pop neighbourhood retail shops. Walmart already has ties with kiranas through its Best Price wholesale business in India, wherein these vendors act as resellers. In addition to integrating more of these stores and small retailers into Flipkart’s supply chain network, Walmart will likely get them to start using Flipkart's PhonePe <keyword id="6358577" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="digital-payments">digital payments</keyword> network to accept and disburse payments offline. The payments app crossed <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/startups/newsbuzz/flipkart-owned-phonepe-clocks-42-4-million-upi-transfers/articleshow/64088569.cms">40 million transfers</a> on the Unified Payments Interface in April alone. But it won’t come cheap With its $16 billion investment, Walmart is spending a lot more money in India than Amazon, Flipkart’s nearest competitor in the Indian online shopping market. In 2016, Amazon said it would increase its planned investment in India <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/Amazon-to-increase-India-investment-to-5-billion/article14391866.ece">to $5 billion</a> in order to close the market gap with Flipkart. According to news reports earlier this week, it has pumped <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Companies/toJD0xTVmz0Exkuu7wL6vJ/Amazon-pumps-Rs2600-crore-in-India-unit-amid-trade-war-with.html">an additional $386 million </a>(₹26 billion) into its Indian unit this year. The war over who can offer deeper discounts will affect both firms and further investments will likely be necessary. Flipkart’s parent reported a <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/startups/newsbuzz/flipkart-revenues-rise-29-losses-swell-68-in-fy17/articleshow/62761811.cms">net loss of ₹87.7 billion</a> for the last fiscal year. In all probability, Flipkart will continue to report losses in the near term, something that Walmart is probably okay with since it’s in it for the long haul. Should the acquisition bear fruit, Walmart could even sell a portion of its stake in Flipkart in the future <a href="https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/startup/flipkart-walmart-deal-walmart-executive-doesnt-rule-out-ipo-of-e-commerce-company-in-future-2565649.html">through an IPO</a>. However, it should retain a majority holding. Concurrently, Walmart will continue to operate and more importantly, grow, its wholesale business in India. It plans to <a href="https://retail.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/food-entertainment/grocery/walmart-to-open-50-new-stores-in-india-in-4-5-yrs/64107936">add 50 cash-and-carry stores</a> within the next five years, taking its total Best Price store count to 71.

After the Walmart acquisition, here’s what’s in store from Flipkart

Fintech services platform Razorpay on Thursday announced it has acquired offline payments services provider <keyword id="6519244" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="ezetap" source="Orion">Ezetap</keyword>, becoming one of the few companies globally with a significant online and offline presence in payments. According to sources, the deal size is around $150-200 million. This marks Razorpay's sixth and biggest acquisition to date. The <keyword id="14747570" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="ezetap-team" source="Orion">Ezetap Team</keyword> of around 300 employees will join Razorpay and work as an independent business unit. "We believe that the businesses of tomorrow will not distinguish between physical and digital channels and will expect a unified payment experience through a single integrated platform," said Harshil Mathur, CEO and Co-founder, Razorpay. Ezetap provides software for financial technologies, including point of sales (POS) solutions, billing, loyalty solutions among others, enablingAbusinesses to accept payments in-store and on-delivery. It currently serves over 500,000 touchpoints, including <keyword id="18635" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="amazon" source="Orion">Amazon</keyword> and BigBasket, and works closely with banks like <keyword id="13222" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="sbi" source="Orion">SBI</keyword>, <keyword id="45123" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="hdfc" source="Orion">HDFC</keyword>, ICICI and Axis, among others, processing over $10 billion in annual transactions on its platform. "We join Razorpay's suite of products to collectively offer businesses the best-in-class omni-channel payments experience and are excited at the limitless possibilities that together both the companies are looking to explore in the omnichannel payment world," said Byas Nambisan, CEO of Ezetap. Prior to this, Razorpay acquired fintech startup IZealiant Technologies, Malaysia-based Curlec, TERA Finlabs, Opfin and Thirdwatch. With a $80 billion total payment value (TPV) as of April, Razorpay is eyeing a 10-12 million merchant base by next year. SEE ALSO : <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/rbi-tightens-norms-for-chinese-lending-apps/articleshow/93629917.cms">RBI tightens norms for Chinese lending apps</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/sustainability/news/genzs-millennials-are-turning-to-thrift-stores-to-upgrade-their-wardrobe-while-saving-the-environment/articleshow/93619737.cms">GenZs, millennials are turning to thrift stores to upgrade their wardrobe while saving the environment</a>

Fintech services platform Razorpay acquires offline payments firm Ezetap

Bigbasket acquires DailyNinja to expand services in Bengaluru New Delhi, Mar 24 () Online grocery seller Bigbasket on Tuesday announced acquisition of milk service delivery network DailyNinja to expand its services in Bengaluru. With this acquisition, Bigbasket expects to grow business by about 200 per cent in the next 12 months, the company said in a statement. "Bigbasket...announced 100 per cent business acquisition of online milk delivery app DailyNinja. The acquisition will enable Bigbasket to consolidate its leadership position in the subscription delivery space in Bengaluru. "DailyNinja currently caters to around 1,10,000 customers transacting daily and will augment bbdaily's (milk delivery app) reach," the company said in a statement. * * * * *MyGate app ties up with e-commerce companies for contact less deliveries Mumbai: Technology-forward app MyGate on Tuesday said it has partnered with Swiggy, Licious, Grofers, Dunzo and other leading e-commerce companies to enable contact less deliveries of essential services in the wake of coronavirus outbreak. The company's 'Leave at Gate' feature, which establishes a clear process for contactless deliveries is being made available pro-actively to all the 1.5 million homes on its platform. PRS PSK ANU SHWSHW

Business briefs

<ul><li><keyword id="430602" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="justdial" source="Orion">JustDial</keyword>’s operating revenue declined 6% last quarter compared to the same time period last year.</li><li>This comes as a surprise as the festive season of October-December quarter is usually the best time for any consumer-facing business.</li><li>While the recent management change after Reliance acquisition may be one reason for the recent decline, over-diversification may be another.</li></ul>While many other digital businesses like Zomato, Nykaa and Paytm have recovered from the impact of COVID-19 a long time ago, JustDial seems stuck. Market watchers say it could be because the app is trying to be Google, without the resources to be one. Once again, JustDial's quarterly revenue declined on a year-on-year basis, which is a cause of concern since October-December quarter is usually the best time for any consumer-facing business. It is the time when customers are on a spending spree because of the festive season of Diwali and Christmas. However, the decline in JustDial’s operating revenue came as a surprise, especially when the company seems to offer every service that can be sold online. The stock was down over 3% on January 19, the first trading day after the earnings were reported. <div type="image" title="JustDial can’t beat Google and it should stop trying to, say analysts" msid="89011002" hostid="261"></div> From food to flight tickets, from delivery services to at-home beauty services, you name it and JustDial would have a seller on its platform. Yet, the revenue declined. Market watchers say, being a jack of all trades may not be working well for this 26-year-old company. Neha Khanna, director at Value Prolific (ValPro) Capital, tells Business Insider that JustDial has spread itself too thin and it has made it susceptible to competition from all sides. <div type="image" title="JustDial can’t beat Google and it should stop trying to, say analysts" msid="89010548" hostid="261"></div> JustDial — which offers at least 14 different services — is currently in competition with all the big newage digital businesses one can think of. Few examples include Paytm, BharatPe, Google Pay, PhonePe and others for its payments/fintech business, BigBasket for its grocery delivery business, Zomato and Swiggy for food delivery business, and Urban Company for at-home services vertical. <div type="image" title="JustDial can’t beat Google and it should stop trying to, say analysts" msid="89013326" hostid="261"></div> This stands true that JustDial is a discovery business, therefore, it simply has to sign up vendors/professionals willing to offer the service. It is still not doing the company any favour. “Google has taken away their core offering [of services discovery], and other players are emerging much stronger in different verticals,” Khanna says while explaining the knots in JustDial’s business. Yash Gupta, Equity Research Analyst at AngelOne, tells Business Insider that the nominal decline in JustDial’s business in the third quarter could also be attributed to the recent<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/just-dial-share-price-surge-as-mukesh-ambani-is-looking-to-buy-just-dial/articleshow/84432450.cms"> management change</a> after the Reliance Retail acquisition. There is usually a dull period for the stock due to cleaning of the balance sheet, he notes. But that could only be a part of the reason. Gupta explains that JustDial is a ‘pull’ sort of business model, where they need to go to customers and get them to start paying for its services. Meanwhile, other companies — such as Zomato, Swiggy, and even Google — where customers come on their own. This becomes the first challenge for the company. Secondly, the failure of JD Mart — the business-to-business (B2B) ecommerce marketplace of JustDial — to do anything substantial in the three quarters has further disappointed the people who keep track of this space, Gupta added. JD Mart competes with IndiaMart, which has been <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/indiamart-share-price-has-gone-up-five-times-in-just-the-last-18-months-here-is-why/articleshow/86058084.cms">reporting higher revenue </a>than JustDial for the past two years by focusing on B2B ecommerce. The crux of all these problems is over-diversification that prevents it from going big in one segment, Gupta says. They would have done much better if they focused on one vertical, he adds. ALSO WATCH: A ₹3,000 crore fund manager says even conglomerates in India struggle the moment they have more than two verticals ⁠⁠ <div type="Youtube" id="kSf5f3gXjKg" title="A ₹3,000-crore fund manager explains why he won&amp;#39;t buy RIL, why he sold ITC and bought HDFC Life" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/kSf5f3gXjKg/mqdefault.jpg"></div> The common thread running in what both Valpro and AngelOne analysts are saying is the fact that both have not been able to figure out why Reliance decided to acquire JustDial. “I don’t really see any value proposition for Reliance in JustDial,'' says ValPro’s Khanna. Things can become clear one Reliance unfolds its plan for JustDial, AngelOne’s Gupta adds. <div type="image" title="JustDial can’t beat Google and it should stop trying to, say analysts" msid="89013331" hostid="261"></div> SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/cred-expands-esops-pool-to-500-million-employees-can-own-12-5-of-fintech-startup/articleshow/89010053.cms">CRED says that all its employees get stock options, expands pool to $500 million</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/hul-bajaj-auto-lampt-infotech-and-other-hot-stocks-on-january-20/slidelist/89008387.cms">HUL, Bajaj Auto, L&amp;T Infotech and other hot stocks on January 20</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/indias-daily-covid-19-count-surpasses-three-lakh-after-eight-months/articleshow/89009476.cms">India’s daily COVID-19 count surpasses three lakh after eight months, Omicron tally climbs to 9,287</a>

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