The continuing future of retail is online, say big retailers like Big Bazaar and Walmart

Many large offline retail chains that switched to on line through the lockdown have reported spike in sales from digital channels, and expect the momentum to keep as consumers prefer to order digitally despite restrictions are being eased.

Several retailers, which earlier started selling important items - just like food and grocery just - via on the web and app-structured channels, have now started offering several items generally speaking merchandise such as apparels, appliances, and electronics through these platforms.

According to specialists, having an internet channel has now become inevitable for the original retailers and would need to push this channel further to contend with local kirana shops, which are also at this point getting smarter by adopting digital technologies through the lockdown period.

“I expect the suppliers to keep with the momentum they have got built for web business during the lockdown and extend with their wider categories later on to build a truly omni channel organization,” said EY Spouse and National leader, Buyer Goods and Retail Pinakiranjan Mishra.

Future Group President Foodstuff & FMCG Kamaldeep Singh said though the footfall at its hypermarts continues to be low and hasn't come to the pre-COVID level however the typical ticket size is up drastically as buyers are purchasing online.

 Frequency of shopping continues to be not back to normal and the ticket size is normally up considerably. Shoppers are deciding on residence delivery as a safe option, he explained, adding “Big Bazaar has seen a hop in orders for residence delivery through bigbazaar.com, Whatsapp ordering and buying through phone”.

Home delivery of products would be a very important part and Long term group has ramped up its infrastructure for the same, he added.

Similar developments were also witnessed by funds and carry retailers such as for example - Walmart, Metro Cash & Carry and Lots Wholesale.

According to Metro Income & Carry India MD& CEO Arvind Mediratta, “what demonetisation did to digital repayments, the lockdown did to technology in retail”.

Walmart India, which operates Perfect Price cash and take retailers, said its e-commerce revenue have grown 4.5x after lockdown. It experienced launched a fresh e-commerce app which includes seen half of a million downloads.

“We are seeing buyers sticking to ordering online actually after easing in lockdown constraints,” said Walmart India Chief Digital Officer Chandan Khaitan.

Its stores in Tier II & III places like Karimnagar, Nizamabad, Aurangabad and Amravati also have shown high e-commerce mixture, he said.

“Customers are also seen building evolved usage of e-commerce app such as for example saving their items found in favourites and working with the favourite list for re-ordering,” said Khaitan.

“Metro Cash & Hold had launched its low cost app in mid-April through the lockdown and had received a great response from all our consumer groups. It had documented a lakh plus downloads of its app in less than 90 days,” he said.

Customers are primarily investing in staples, daily essentials, foodstuff and confectionery accompanied by home and personal hygiene, prepared to eat, frozen and milk products.

“We have seen kiranas who are believed conservative also prefer buying on our app. Speed of delivery clubbed with seamless ordering experience features helped us garner bigger orders through our app,” explained Mediratta adding, “adapting to technology may be the need of the hour and future for the retail sector. If exercised rightly and blended well with offline, online stations are here to stay”.

Similarly, LOTS Wholesale Solutions Managing Director Tanit Chearavanont said COVID outbreak offers changed consumer buying behaviour and has got reinforced new habits towards online channels. It has got seen a “large surge in demand approaching through our e-commerce platform” through the lockdown period.

“Increased digital adoption through the lockdown phase has resulted in a more rapidly acceptance of omni- channel means of retailing. We foresee that the pattern of consumers deciding on online shopping will probably continue with speedily evolving consumer preferences and attitudes. Vendors and companies are embracing the change and preparing for transformation to be able to give a seamless shopping experience with their consumers,” he said.

Relating to Chearavanont, LOTS Low cost is “focusing on offline to online business strategy and also have witnessed a healthy amount of orders approaching through the digital retailer which complements our physical existence”.