Thirty-year-old Ritu Kumar bought groceries to last for the entire month. She scrolled up to select atta, right to buy some veggies and down to buy some personal care products. Yes she did it on her phone!
While online retail is not a recent phenomenon, its expansion to include groceries is a blessing to those families where both partners go to work.
“It is always easier to buy online as there are a lot of discounts. There is a guarantee of replacement in case of any damage and this does not happen always in a conventional retail store. Also, all the products are at one place. I don’t need to go to several shops to do my monthly grocery shopping,” says Hema, a techie.
While retailers like bigbasket.com have established themselves across the country, many local online retailers are making online grocery shopping popular in the city.
HyderabadBasket.com, Easymandi.com, Kunnusgroceries.com, Vijethagrocer.com, Onemart.in are a few that are flooding the online grocery retail market.
Online shopping comes with its perks as retailers don’t need to bear the expenses of maintaining inventory for customers. Hence, they can offer their online purchasers with numerous discounts on various products.
For example, while Easymandi.com offers a discounted price for a toiletries combo, HyderabadBasket.com gives a 50 per cent discount on your first order along with seasonal offers. They also promise to deliver within a stipulated time of six hours.
Kunnus on the other hand, adds extra points to a customer’s credit when they introduce the retailer to another. The regular discounts on products and free home delivery come as a bonus.
“It is highly important that we satisfy our customers so that they come back to us. Rolling out discounts on various products is one such way. Our expenses are limited to delivery and maintaining the quality. We do not spend a lot on advertising either, thanks to increasing number of social media users. Hence discounts don’t mean losses,” shares Karthik from Hydrabadmart.com.
Denizens in the city seem to put these offers to the best use. So says a representative from Easymandi.com that was established in 2013. “The city’s response to this latest phenomenon is excellent. A lot of people are turning online to meet almost all their needs.”
The fact that the tedious shopping process can be done at the comfort of one’s home is what is increasing the demand of these online stores.
Harsha Sivaram, a student from the city who generally helps his parents with purchasing monthly groceries says that this process is much simpler. “ I don’t need to leave my work and waste time as my mom scrutinises every product that she buys. With online shopping, in one window, I work and shop in another. Apart from the discounts, that are obvious attractions. What I like the most is that you get export quality products and also products that are imported from elsewhere that are hard to find in a store nearby home,” he says.
This is also not limited to the current tech-savvy generation. “I haven’t bought groceries online till now. But I am looking forward to as I saw my daughter-in-law buy the same product I buy in a general store nearby for 10 per cent discount. Besides, I don’t need to struggle with my knee aches after an evening of shopping for things like vegetables,” expresses 53-year-old Lakshmi, a homemaker from the city.
Brick-and-mortar retail stores may be losing to online shopping, but there are people who like the traditional way of shopping.“It takes away the fun of shopping for me. In our family all of us go out together on weekends to shop for the weekly groceries. It is a great bonding time for all the family members who in other days are occupied by work,” says Manikanta, a student from the city.
“It is hard to trust online retailers, though they provide replacement gurantee. If you are buying rice in you get to check three to four shops and buy the one with best quality and price. It is not the case with the online stores,” says Gayathri, a 45-year-old homemaker from the city.