Flipkart Launches B2B Digital Marketplace To Connect MSMEs With Retailers

Flipkart Wholesale, the digital B2B marketplace of ecommerce giant Flipkart, on Wednesday (September 2), launched its operations, to connect MSMEs and kirana store owners with retailers and enable digitisation of the wholesale marketplace.

The platform is currently available for fashion retailers, especially footwear and apparel, in Gurugram, Delhi and Bengaluru, with plans to expand to Mumbai as well.

By the end of this year, Flipkart Wholesale also plans to expand to 20 more cities and in categories such as home and kitchen and grocery. The B2B digital platform that is conveniently accessible to retailers via the app on Google Play Store, aims to rope in over 300 strategic partners and have over 2 lakh listings in 2 months. Additionally, the platform will enable the onboarding of 50 brands and over 250 local manufacturers in the coming days. The company claims that Flipkart Wholesale provides customers with a wide selection of products at attractive prices, also providing small businesses with an easy credit facility to enable cash flow, along with data-driven recommendations for stock selection.

Adarsh Menon, senior vice president and head, Flipkart Wholesale, said, “Flipkart Wholesale is built on the core value proposition of bringing prosperity to Indian kiranas and MSMEs by making their business easier using technology. With the strong capability within the group in B2B, we will focus on meeting the needs of kiranas and MSMEs by providing these small businesses with a wide selection at significant value, powered by technology to make their lives easier.”

The Flipkart Wholesale app can be downloaded from the Google Play Store. It has begun operations on a pilot basis after Flipkart acquired its parent company Walmart’s loss-making B2B wholesale franchise ‘Best Price’ last month. It was reported that Flipkart would either shut down the unviable ‘Best Price’ stores, of which there were 28 in India, or turn them into warehouses for its own ecommerce operations, as part of its plans to consolidate loss-making Walmart’s operations in India.

The All India Online Vendors Association (AIOVA), which claims to represent the interest of more than 2000 sellers, had approached the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to protest against Flipkart’s reverse acquisition of parent company’s Walmart’s B2B wholesale chain. The AIOVA had said that the acquisition wasn’t tenable since a CCI investigation against Flipkart for abuse of dominant position was underway.