e-retailer Flipkart signs pact to help small, medium enterprises
19 Jun 2014
Flipkart, one of India's top e-retailers, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Federation of Indian Micro and Small and Medium Enterprises (FISME) and the National Centre for Design and Product Development (NCDPD) in their effort to boost manufacturing and entrepreneurship in the country.
According to the memorandum of understanding signed today, Flipkart will provide infrastructural support to micro, small and medium entrepreneurs in data analytics, marketing and customer acquisition to help them scale their business.
''We believe the marketplace model is best suited for an emerging economy like India with a huge population. This model has seen traction in the past three years and we want to further use this platform to encourage entrepreneurship in the country,'' Flipkart's vice-president (marketplace) Ankit Nagori told newspersons in New Delhi.
He said the partnership will enable 50,000 MSMEs and artisans to become self-reliant, improve living standards and scale their business manifold.
This is a one of its kind venture marking the first time that three such prominent organisations have come together to create a platform to focus on the betterment of manufacturers and artisans, he said.
The move would also benefit women entrepreneurs. ''This will help them plan their production and expand business, revolutionising manufacturing in India, encouraging entrepreneurship and growing the rural economy,'' R K Srivastava, executive director, NCDPD, said.
According to the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), the e-commerce industry in India increased 150 per cent from Rs19,249 crore in 2009 to Rs47,349 crore in 2012 because of the growing number of small retailers and manufacturers in the net.
''Various entrepreneurial ventures have mushroomed by virtue of opportunities provided by e-commerce. E-tailing, which is 16 per cent of the e-commerce market today, would grow to 30-35 per cent by 2020,'' Shubho Ray, president, IAMAI, said.