India’s e-commerce market, which is worth $36 billion at present, will exceed $100 billion in next four years.
With Internet penetration expected to almost double to 60 per cent, India will have nearly 846 million Internet users, of which 150 million are expected to shop online by 2022, said a report titled ‘Propelling India towards global leadership in e-commerce‘ by industry body Nasscom and PwC India.
At present, India has 450 million internet users with 34 per cent internet penetration.
The report highlights the growing potential of e-commerce in the country and its increasing contribution to future economic growth.
The e-commerce market is expected to grow at 25 per cent in the next five years, with online financial services set to grow the fastest, the report added.
The rapid growth will be a result of increasing Internet access and booming digital payments coupled with rising smartphone markets. The next set of online shoppers are expected to come from Tier II cities or beyond.
India’s middle class will lead the show. In the next few years, they are likely to consume as much as their Chinese counterparts, and will eventually supersede both the US and China.
In next few years, per capita e-commerce spend will move the Indian e-commerce industry towards an inflection point.
The report also pointed out that the next 100 million customers will be very different from the existing 50 million and therefore, e-biz players must make move accordingly.
The next battle in the Indian e-commerce industry will be fought around a seamless shopping experience, building digital trust, voice-based or ‘conversational’
commerce and creating a catalogue of localised content.
For growth, e-commerce companies have to focus on building loyalty which will make a huge difference and lead to rising in repeat rate.
It also underlined the need for harmonisation of laws and regulations covering the e-commerce ecosystem, giving them a common definition and intent.
Besides, the rise of e-commerce market will create over one million jobs in next five years.