Flipkart Marketplace introduces new policies and capabilities to build a more inclusive e-commerce ecosystem

• Continuing its commitment to sellers with a slew of new offerings, the new strategic policy changes focus on easy settlements, reduction in platform fees, and new programs for greater ease of doing business online and helping sellers grow
• Earlier this year, Flipkart launched multiple new initiatives for sellers like a 10-minute onboarding process, ease of listing, faster payments

Bengaluru – July 12, 2022: Flipkart, India’s homegrown e-commerce marketplace, has announced its continued commitment to sellers with a slew of new marketplace policies and capabilities to enable greater ease of doing business online. The initiatives aim to provide sellers a smooth and convenient experience on its platform with a host of new capabilities, programs and benefits to nurture their growth.

Jagjeet Harode

These new features and capabilities focus on ease of doing online business for  MSMEs and supporting their sustainable growth. They include Easy Settlements, Simplified Rate Card,  Single Final Settlement Value for the sellers, Reduction in the Platform Fee, growth programs – Flipkart Ignite and Business Experts to hand-hold sellers; AI-led cataloging support and other policies to drive more profitably for them on the Flipkart platform.

Jagjeet Harode, Senior Director and Head – Marketplace, Flipkart, said, “Enabling the growth and success of our seller partners is a key priority for Flipkart. We are committed to finding technology-based solutions to address the needs and challenges of the seller ecosystem. We have introduced the second phase of the Flipkart EDGE initiative to ensure sustained growth and ease of doing business online. The future of business is digital, and the initiatives and innovations we have introduced will help our MSME and seller partners take important steps towards making their business more resilient, profitable, and future-ready.”

Divyesh Shah, Senior Director and Head of Marketplace Product and technology, Flipkart, said, “We have strategically underlined the solutions and developed capabilities that will make it easier for our seller partners to do business on our online marketplace. Our goal through these new developments is focused on reducing the cost of operations through tech-led interventions, assisting them across all touchpoints and supplementing their business needs. We believe this initiative will encourage even more sellers to adopt online marketplaces and experience the convenience associated with them.”

Policy changes and tech capability details uniformly for existing and new sellers on Flipkart Marketplace:

• Easy Settlements and Simplified Costs:
  • All New Simplified Rate Card: The initiative will enable sellers to understand their profit margin/commissions, fixed fees, and shipping fees through a simplified rate card. Sellers on the platform will not face the complication of various criteria for pricing basis location, shipping fee and payment mode.
  • Single Final Settlement Value: Sellers will get one assured settlement value irrespective of service profile, zone or payment mode. This will bring high degree of predictability for the sellers, thus making it easier for them to operate online.   
• Reduction in Operating costs:
  • Flat and Reduced Return Cost: Reduced and flat return costs for product listings giving a good customer experience will reduce the cost to sellers and enable them to earn more.
  • Revamped F-Assured Criteria at Lower Cost: Through this initiative, sellers will be able to claim/maintain the F-Assured badge in the future by complying with new eligibility criteria without incurring additional operational costs due to separate inventory, having dedicated manpower or space in the warehouses. This will also improve the speed of order processing and reduce business costs for MSMEs with Flipkart.
  • Catalog Cost Reduction: In a step towards democratizing e-commerce for all, catalog creation through an AI-led image editing solution has resulted in significant cost reduction for all sellers across the verticals.
  • Affordable Packaging Options: Affordable packaging options provided by Flipkart for all shipments resulting in cost savings for all sellers.
• Growth Programs:
  • Flipkart Ignite is a dedicated training and incubation program offered by Flipkart to support the growth of sellers who have been newly onboarded onto the platform. The program is open to all Flipkart sellers. This also includes facilities such as free ad credits, exclusive training sessions, image editing, and catalog creation, amongst many others.
  • Business Experts program aims to enhance the journey and progress of existing sellers on the platform who wish to grow their business performance further. Flipkart offers various account management services, including ad support, insights on pricing and selection, CareTouch for quicker resolutions for business-related queries, event planning, leadership connect, and more.

This is an extension to the recent measures introduced by Flipkart in April 2022, including the seamless 10-minute onboarding process, ease of listing, and payment policies. Simplifying the onboarding process through mobile phones with fewer steps has resulted in a 2x increase in onboarded sellers and a 4x jump from the sign-up stage. The policies underline Flipkart’s deep understanding of seller needs and align with the company’s commitment to encouraging digital adoption among MSMEs.

Flipkart continues to make the online journey of MSMEs seamless with regular interventions, resources, and solutions even after the onboarding is completed. The company’s investments in technology, innovation, supply chain and business processes aim to build a more sustainable and inclusive platform.