As India gears up for unlock 2.0, e-commerce platform Flipkart has said it has enabled more than 90 per cent of its sellers to resume operations on its marketplace.
Flipkart has also seen a 125 per cent rise in new seller signing-up on the platform, in comparison to its existing seller base, in the April-June period, the company said in a statement.
Local MSMEs from Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Delhi and Tamil Nadu have shown maximum interest in taking their businesses online.
These sellers operate in various categories, ranging from women’s clothing, personal care, food and nutrition, home improvement tools and baby-care products, said the company.
“By allowing MSMEs, artisans and smaller traders in India to bring greater efficiencies in their operations with a strong market reach, e-commerce is further empowering these businesses to generate livelihood opportunities,” said Flipkart.
The most important need of the seller community, in these times, is that of working capital.
To address this, Flipkart ran a special offer on loans through its ‘Growth Capital’ programme which is designed specifically to enable independence for MSMEs who operate online.
“Through the programme, most of the transacting sellers can avail credit at competitive interest rates with an approval time of one day and disbursal within 48 hours. A 3-month moratorium period has been implemented on existing loans,” informed the company.
Further, any additional amount on sellers’ existing loans sanctioned during this period will have an extended financial limit with a 6-month moratorium period.
Flipkart also extended certain ongoing premium services availed by sellers to include the lockdown period in their subscription terms so that their investment is not hampered for a stipulated period of time.
Under the ‘Flipkart Samarth’ programme, it has supported the livelihood of over 500,000 artisans, weavers and micro-enterprises across the country.