Festive discounts get even bigger as Paytm joins Flipkart, Amazon

With the biggest Indian festive season approaching, online retailers are gearing up to roll out their usual host of sales campaigns with steep discounts ranging up to as steep as 90 per cent.

Ecommerce companies Flipkart, Amazon, Paytm Mall and Snapdeal are preparing to woo customers with cash backs, discounts, freebies, fast delivery options and travel add-ons.

Homegrown ecommerce market leader Flipkart, which is celebrating its 10th year of operation, has decided to hold its fourth edition of Big Billion Day sale from 20 to 24 September.

Flipkart chief executive Kalyan Krishnamurthy said, "The Big Billion Day is a celebration for India because it flags off and sets the tone for festive shopping in the country. Our focus this year is to ensure a high uniqueness quotient to our selection across categories. We're fully prepared to process a billion wishes in time through India's biggest event of the year."

Besides deals and offers, Flikart offers its users access to unique and exclusive selection across 80-plus categories. This is over and above Flipkart's exclusive partnerships with several brands, both local and foreign, Krishnamurthy said.

While the discounts will reach up to 90 per cent, the company offers maximum benefits during the festival season in categories like mobiles and electronics, fashion and appliances. Flipkart is also offering EMI options on debit cards this year.

Paytm Mall is working jointly with merchant partners to host the biggest retail gala of the year. "Customers will be able to shop for a range of products from over 1,000 brand stores and 15,000 brand-authorised retailers. Our promise is to offer customers the biggest and best, while ensuring the season is big for thousands of small shopkeepers across India," a company spokesperson said.

US e-commerce giant Amazon has created a selection of over 160 million products across categories for its upcoming Great Indian Sale, the date for which will be announced today. Amazon has also increased its seller base to 2.25 lakh.

"We have also expanded our selection with exclusive partnerships with popular brands such as Moto, OnePlus, Xiaomi, GAP, IFB, BPL, LG, UnderArmour, Steve Madden Jewelry, Honor, Nokia and Blackberry to name a few," an Amazon spokesperson said.

Amazon also offers No Cost EMI to enable customers to benefit from the festival sales. It has tied up with Bajaj Finserv for an EMI offer up to 12 months for credit card purchases. No Cost EMI schemes as well across all major banks who offer 6 EMI tenure options, the company said.

Amazon too is focusing on top-selling categories like smartphones, fashion, large appliances, consumer electronics and FMCG. Amazon Prime members will get access to exclusive deals 30 minutes before non-Prime members.