Flipkart aims to help SMEs to generate business worth a million in 2015

Flipkart, an E-commerce major, through its platform aims to help small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to generate business worth Rs 10 lakh (a million) this year. In fact, to encourage and enable sellers grow and expand their businesses, Flipkart are offering various initiatives/support like – workshops/sessions, SME training programs, working capital assistance, marketing support services like packaging, cataloging to sellers and through Investments in building a technology platform.

Handloom, handicrafts and local artifacts have emerged as prominent categories on their platform.

SVP – Marketplaces, Flipkart, Ankit Nagori said that they aim to have at least 10,000 sellers become millionaires this year through the sales generated on their platform. Today, 20 percent of their sellers do an average business of Rs.1 crore every month. Last year they saw over 2000 sellers become millionaires through Flipkart.

Last year, nearly 60 percent of millionaire sellers coming from metros (Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore) and the rest from the non-metros, but this year they are seeing an increase in the participation of SMEs from tier 2 and 3 cities since last years.

Categories like handloom & handicraft, home decor & furnishing, large appliances and jewellery, will transform into high performing categories and help drive more margins for the sellers.

Flipkart has one of the largest sellers base in the country today with thousands of sellers selling products across categories. With the aim of encouraging and enabling SMEs, Flipkart has been working with various government bodies and associations like Federation of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises (FISME) and National Centre for Design & Product Development (NCDPD) to boost manufacturing in India.

To step up the training facilities, Flipkart also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Director General – Employment & Training (DGET), National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Ministry of Labour and Employment, Govt of India last year.

To further enable SMEs to join this model and ensure the success of these artisans and entrepreneurs on the Flipkart marketplace, they are working on several initiatives to build and strengthen the overall e-commerce ecosystem.

Flipkart has been working with a few trusted investors/ partners to offer working capital assistance to the sellers since last year. With average loan value of Rs. 5 – 10 lakhs, high loan value up to Rs.50 lakhs is available for sellers. So far, this facility has helped hundreds of SMEs to expand and grow their business through the e-marketplace platform.

The new found keenness amongst the SME’s and Flipkart’s efforts to enable them through its initiatives is sure to bring in a new wave of change in SME sector.