Reliance Retail’s Digital Commerce Arm JioMart’s Seller Base Soars 94% YoY In Q4 FY24

Even as its profit and revenue declined sequentially, Reliance Retail, the retail vertical of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), said its digital commerce arm JioMart saw healthy growth in seller additions in the quarter ended March 2024. 

In its quarterly financial results, RIL said that JioMart saw its merchant base jump 94% year-on-year (YoY). However, it didn’t disclose the merchant base numbers. 

On similar lines, the conglomerate also said that the number of merchants selling consumer electronics via its new commerce platform witnessed a 20% YoY growth but did not specify any numbers.

In the statement, the company also didn’t mention the contribution of digital and new commerce businesses to Reliance Retail’s top line. In the third quarter (Q3) of the financial year 2023-24 (FY24), the company had noted that these verticals accounted for 19% of the total revenue for the retail giant.

Overall, Reliance Retail’s operating revenue rose 9.8% YoY to INR 67,610 Cr in the quarter ended March 2024 as against INR 61,559 Cr in the year-ago period. Sequentially, revenue declined more than 9% from INR 74,373 Cr. 

Meanwhile, Reliance Retail’s net profit stood at INR 2,698 Cr in Q4 FY24, up 11.7% YoY and down 14.7% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ).

“… We continue to invest and innovate across formats and products to improve our customer value proposition and serve evolving consumer needs. Robust expansion and growth of our retail business signifies our commitment to customer centricity and confidence in India’s consumption story,” said Reliance Retail Ventures Limited’s (RRVL’s) executive director Isha Ambani.

Meanwhile, the conglomerate also said that it ramped up its investments in digital news and entertainment verticals during the quarter, which, in turn, drove strong growth for OTT streaming platform JioCinema.

It claimed that the 2024 edition of Women Premier League (WPL) streamed on JioCinema saw a 3X growth in watch-time and 70% “higher reach” compared to the previous season. 

“JioCinema also delivered record reach and engagement for TV network shows. Bigg Boss Hindi saw 2.7X viewers, 1.3X watch-time and 1.6X views and Bigg Boss Kannada had 5.6X viewers, 3.5X watch-time and 4.2X views compared to the last season,” it said. 

Meanwhile, RIL’s digital arm Jio Platforms reported a 12% rise in its consolidated net profit to INR 5,583 Cr in the March quarter from INR 4,984 Cr in the year-ago period. On similar lines, operating revenue jumped 13.4% YoY to INR 28,871 Cr during the quarter under review.

Overall, RIL’s net profit remained flat at INR 21,243 Cr in Q4 FY24 as against INR 21,227 in Q4 FY23.