While this question has been a topic of discussion for quite some time, the news of Amazon & Jio choosing to partner with local businesses has pivoted it into the spotlight at several virtual meets, investor forums, stakeholder sessions, etc.
Personally, for me, these talks have been really interesting. Running a retail-tech company requires me to be updated and open about new things happening in the market. Upon listening to varied opinions, what makes me curious is – what kind of changes are we likely to witness in consumer buying patterns?
After years of experience in the industry, I’ve learnt that there are two different sets of buyers in the Indian market. One which has been using e-commerce sites because they get discounts, home-delivery, return/refund options & a better buying experience. The other, which resists online buying as they trust the local stores more and believe they provide genuine quality products.
While there might not be seismic changes in the consumption patterns of the former set, which has been pampered for long by large players. The shift from traditional purchases to e-commerce is likely to happen in the latter. This set of people will now be more comfortable to buy online since it will be from their friendly neighbourhood store.
