NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Thursday, September 26, 2019

By Aastha Singal

The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) have time and again opposed the discounts provided by e-commerce giants – Amazon & Flipkart – arguing that it creates an uneven playing field between the sellers who sell online and offline. Online marketplaces, however, are arguing that they are instead enabling the small sellers to scale by bringing them online.

In order to ensure collective growth of the ecosystem, e-commerce platforms have been working for generating livelihood opportunities, developing infrastructure, driving tech adoption and boosting skill development by providing small sellers, brands, MSMEs, entrepreneurs and artisans by providing a marketplace for their expanding market access.

Online marketplaces have helped businesses stretch beyond their geographical limitations to reach the remotest parts of the country. “E-commerce has set in motion the development of industries such as manufacturing, supply chain and retail and bring small merchants and players online,” stated Nishant Gupta, Head of Marketplace at Flipkart.

Photo courtesy of Pabak Sarkar.