Revealing The Success Story Of India’s Hub In Online Shopping, Flipkart!
The Indian e-commerce system was not a very popular idea in the past years. Undoubtedly, companies like Reliance and Infosys were always brewing up with advancements in the technology sector but, the then business world required a startup that could understand the emerging trend of online shopping.
Well, it was Flipkart that realized the potential of e-commerce and launched its services at a time when internet entrepreneurship was a feeble action. Starting from a house in Bengaluru to becoming India's billionaire online platform, Flipkart is a well-known name in every household.
While we all know this 'India Ka Amazon,' we don't know its untold story. So, we present to you the success story of India's 'Flip' in the e-commerce system, Flipkart!
The Beginning of Flipkart
It was 2007 when two software engineers, Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal, noticed the dynamic shift towards technology and launched Flipkart as an online shopping platform. The two friends were working at Amazon when they decided to quit their jobs and considered starting an e-commerce website in India.
Moving steadily with the vision, they began with selling books and later added other categories for shopping on Flipkart. With books, they found it easy to list, ship, and find vendors. The founders were very clear about their thoughts and efforts. While Sachin took bold decisions, Binny was more thoughtful in implementing them.
A Journey With Challenges
Undoubtedly, Flipkart's first choice of product (books) helped it in customer satisfaction in the initial years as the startup sold books worth rupees four crores by the end of 2009. Flipkart's early years had a series of setbacks, struggles, and challenges. After being turned down from many investors, Flipkart took over 18 months to get a funding of $1 million. Gradually, Flipkart grew with its business and received more funds.
With new investors and more funds, the company added electronics products in 2010. Apart from this, the online payment system was also a trust issue for Indian customers. Flipkart, in order to gain customers' trust, started cash on delivery service. Moreover, the company also introduced its supply chain to ensure the shortest delivery time for customers.
With all these solutions, the business continued expanding across categories, and funds came pouring in from the investors. By 2012, Flipkart made its entry in the renowned unicorn club. In the coming years, it vowed customers with its excellent service, affordable prices, delivery reach, and new product categories.
The Control And Acquisitions
Although Sachin and Binny grew Flipkart as one of India's most successful startups, the startup was adversely affected in recent years with a decrease in its valuation. In 2018, the decade long journey of the two founders saw its end after Walmart acquired the company at a stake of 77%. While their separation from Flipkart was a hot topic of debate in the print media, no one can deny the fact that Bansals built the company into a multi-billion-dollar powerhouse.
With Kalyan Krishnamurthy being the CEO of the company, Flipkart is altogether an Indian answer to global online shopping. Eventually, the untold story of Flipkart is a combination of success, failures, losing control, and then moving on!
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