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Flipkart, Amazon claim record online festive sales
Bengaluru, Oct 18 (IANS) India’s leading e-tailer Flipkart and its American rival Amazon on Thursday claimed record online sales ahead of Dusshera and Diwali festivals.
“We made a record-breaking business during the five-day sales festival on October 10-14 in diverse categories, including smartphones, electronic gadgets, home appliances, furniture and fashion,” Flipkart said in a statement on Thursday.
The Indian arm of Amazon also said it had record sales across categories during its great Indian festival celebration from October 10-15, with a 12-hour prime early access to its prime members.
“We had an overwhelming response to the fifth edition of the fest, with sales in the first 36 hours surpassing the first wave of last year and exceeded our plans,” said the city-based Amazon.
Both have, however, admitted that maximum sales were in the smart phones category, followed by televisions, laptops, home appliances and fashion in Gross Merchandise Value (GMV).
“We accounted for half of the e-tailer industry’s GMV, driven by higher sales in mobiles and fashion verticals, which grew 70 per cent and 78 per cent,” said Flipkart.
“Smart-phones had their biggest season, with Xiaomi selling over 1 million devices in a day followed by OnePlus with sales of Rs 400 crore in a day and premium phones sales exceeding a month of all India online sales,” said Amazon India head Amit Agarwal.
On the second day of sales, Flipkart began its offers on mobiles and sold one million in the first hour, ending the day with 3 million units.
“Three-in-four mobiles bought during the fest was on Flipkart,” said the Walmart-owned company.
World’s retail giant Walmart on August 18 completed acquiring 77 per cent equity stake in Flipkart for a whopping $16 billion (Rs 107,662 crore).
“We recorded 70 per cent share of the e-tail market in the country to match the scale of marquee retail events and demonstrated our position as market leader,” said Flipkart Chief Executive Kalyan Krishnamurthy.
Flipkart also claimed 85 per cent share of online market in fashion and 75 per cent in large appliances.
Amazon customers from 99 per cent pin codes placed an order in 4 days, with 80 per cent new customers from small towns.
“Large appliances sales in a single day for Amazon exceeded that of first wave for last festive sale; with 50 per cent sales from tier-2 and below towns,” said Agarwal.
One out of 2 Flipkart shoppers used payment options like EMIs and bank offers, driving 60 per cent of its overall sales and enabling customers to upgrade products in categories like mobiles, TVs and laptops.
“Fashion has brought in 40 per cent new customers and enabled us to maintained leadership with 85 per cent share,” added Krishnamurthy.
For Amazon too, fashion was the biggest category in units sold and new customers acquired, with 63 per cent orders from tier-2 and 3 cities.
“Two out of three of our customers benefited from exchange, EMIs and bank offers. New sellers who took part in the fest for the first time saw 300 per cent jump in sales, with 7,000 of them crossing the millionaire mark,” noted Agarwal.
–IANS
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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.
Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.
During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.
On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”
Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.
It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.
Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.
Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”
On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”
The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.