Tag Archives: Online Retail

IndiaTimes and HomeShop18 heading to be leaders in Online Book Retail

May 30, 2012 Udit Malhotra Leave a comment

To match HomeShop18’s lowest Book Prices, IndiaTimes Shopping, the online retail portal of the Times of India Group, is now offering Books at an Additional Discount of 30%.

With HomeShop18 and IndiaTimes offering Books at real low prices, the best time to buy Books seems to be now.

Buyers of Books from expensive online book retailers like Flipkart will regret their purchases and shall be happy to move on to HomeShop18 and IndiaTimes Shopping.

Both HomeShop18 and IndiaTimes Shopping are offering Books across all categories at much lower prices, with excellent packaging and prompt delivery as compared to the online retailer Flipkart. Read more about Flipkart’s higher prices of books in my post: Homeshop18 beating Flipkart at its own game

The Discount Offer from IndiaTimes is aptly titled “Sabse Sasta Book Challenge”. The details of the Discount Offer can be obtained from this link.

On check-out, use Coupon Code BOOKS to avail the Additional Discount on Books. The Discount is valid on purchases above Rs.237/-. The offer is valid from 30 May 2012 to 1 June 2012.

The Link for the Books Section on the IndiaTimes portal is: http://shopping.indiatimes.com/control/keywordsearch?SEARCH_STRING=books

HomeShop18 is also offering an Additional Discount of 20% on their already lowest prices for Books in the market. On check-out, use Gift Voucher Code GC84KPBU413E to avail the Additional Discount on Books. The Discount is valid on purchases of Rs.500/- or higher. For further details about the Discount Offer from HomeShop18, please read my post: Save up to 20 percent extra on your purchases from Homeshop18

Please note that HomeShop18’s prices for Books, even without any Discount Coupons are already the lowest on the market.

To get the Best Value for your Money, before making your purchase, compare the prices of Books on the websites Homeshop18, IndiaTimes Shopping, Flipkart and on the price comparison website, Junglee.

Flipkart

Its Official Now… LetsBuy.com bites the dust

May 30, 2012 Udit Malhotra Leave a comment

With many online retailers shutting shop between 2010-2012, the casualties of online retail businesses have started appearing in the public domain.

Recently, the online electronics retailer, Letsbuy.com has shut shop and sold its business to another online retailer, Flipkart. Flipkart had announced about the acquisition of Letsbuy.com earlier this year.

I believe no one shall miss the absence of Letsbuy.com due to its limited variety, high product pricing and poor customer service.

LetsBuy customers should hope that the products that they ordered shall get delivered promptly and the ones which they have already received do not need any customer service from the erstwhile LetsBuy.com or its current owner, Flipkart.

Upon visiting the website of Letsbuy.com, the following closure and merger message is displayed:

(Click on Image for Enlarged View)

12 years ago, in India, online retail and other businesses were projected by the techie community, as the next killer idea, the next big thing and were pitched as replacements to old and conventional brick-and-mortar businesses. These gave genuine reasons of concern to many businesses of all sizes.

However, many factors such as :

the lack of availability of high speed internet access,
the lack of availability of easy-to-setup and affordable e-commerce platforms,
the lack of availability of reasonably priced and secure payment gateways,
the lack of good supply chain management systems and
the lack of skilled workforce with domain expertise in areas such as purchases, warehousing, logistics, operations, accounting, taxation, sales, customer service, etc.

coupled with:

the reluctance of the prospective consumers to buy products online, without seeing, touching, feeling and trying them before purchase,
unreasonably high prices of certain products (by certain Sellers with the disbelief that consumers are fools),
nominal usage of Debit Cards, Credit Cards and NetBanking facilities by the Indian consumers,
lack of effective Cash-on-Delivery systems,
very high return rates on Cash-on-Delivery transactions and
customers concerns about post purchase services, etc.

did not let those killer ideas and elevator pitches to translate into successful businesses.

A few survivors from that time are the erstwhile Bazee.com (now Ebay India), Rediff.com and IndiaTimes Shopping.

Just like any other conventional business, to become successful, an ‘online retail business’ has to be sustainable as well as profitable. An online retail business must be built with high standards of excellence and with a goal of building long term customer relationships.

Unfortunately, instead of building long term and lasting relationships with their customers, most online retail businesses these days, try to acquire more customers in a short span of time, by focusing only upon short term transaction based associations.

A customer may not like his neighborhood Retail Store, its products, its prices, the professional conduct and customer service. However, due to the limited number of choices available with him in his neighborhood, he may be constrained to buy from the same retail store.

This is not the case while making online purchases. In just a few clicks, the customer can effortlessly shift from one online retailer to another. The originally disappointing brick-and-mortar retailer is at the risk of losing a customer and other prospective buyers around his center of influence for life, in just a few minutes

These days, a new online retailer is appearing on the horizon every day. For most products and categories, the number of online retailers is increasing every day. Any decline in customer service and other commitments by an online retailer can result in the loss of a valuable customer and other prospective buyers around his center of influence for life, in just a few minutes.

Many online retailers have received large amounts of Capital from Domestic as well as Foreign Private Equity Investors. Many of these online retailers have adopted business strategies, which are neither sustainable nor profitable. With transaction based associations, dwindling consumer loyalties, they are at high risk of ending up like LetsBuy.com.

Let’s hope Flipkart does not flip its own kart with its new acquisition and its current non-customer friendly policies and strategies.

You may also like: Homeshop18 beating Flipkart at its own game

HomeShop 18

Save up to 20 percent extra on your purchases from Homeshop18

May 22, 2012 Udit Malhotra Leave a comment

This is a Money Saving Bonanza for Book Lovers.

India’s leading On-line and On-Air Retailer, Homeshop18 is offering Books at Lowest Prices on the market vis-a-vis its online competitors like Flipkart, Uread, BookAdda, IndiaPlaza, Infibeam, Ebay, IndiaTimes Shopping, etc.

Now you can save up to 20% extra on your purchase of Books, on the already Lowest Prices of Books being offered by Homeshop18.

Select Books worth Rs.500/- from http://homeshop18.com . When you are checking-out for payment, use Gift Voucher Code GC84KPBU413E and get a Discount of 20% i.e. Rs.100/- on your purchase. This Code is valid up to 31 May 2012.

If you are buying Books for more than Rs.500/-, you will get a Discount of Rs. 100/-. I suggest you split your orders in multiples of approx. Rs.500/- and get a Discount of Rs.100/- on every purchase.

You may also like: Homeshop18 beating Flipkart at its own game

Note for Readers: Other than being a Customer, I, my family members or talkabouttech.com are NOT associated/ affiliated with any online or on-air Book Retailer. This post has been written only for the benefit of Consumers at large.

Flipkart, HomeShop 18

Homeshop18 beating Flipkart at its own game

May 12, 2012 Udit Malhotra 72 Comments

Consumer Alert

Do you know that India’s leading online Retailer, Flipkart is charging up to 126% more than its online and on-air competitor, HomeShop18 for Books.

Please refer to the following Table to see a Comparison of Prices of Books offered by Flipkart and HomeShop18 after Discount and Shipping. In a random survey of 20 Books on Cooking, I found that Flipkart is More Expensive than HomeShop18 by up to 126% !!!

Before you order your next Book on any subject online, compare its price on the websites of Flipkart, HomeShop18, IndiaPlaza, Infibeam, IndiaTimes Shopping, Uread and Junglee (a price comparison service by Amazon). Check-it out for yourself and in just a few minutes, you will be able to get the Best Price of your desired Book and More Value for your Money.

(Click on Table for Enlarged View)

What’s more… Homeshop18 is delighting Book Lovers by offering an Additional Discount of 20% on purchase of Books worth Rs. 500/- using a Gift Coupon Code upon check-out. I shall be posting the Gift Coupon Code and its related details shortly on this site.

A quick comparison of the Quality of Packaging of books ordered to Flipkart and Homeshop18 reveals that Flipkart is far behind Homeshop18 on this front too.

Each and every Book shipped by Homeshop18 (including those costing below Rs 100/-) came in an EXCELLENT Triple Layer Packaging, viz. an outer Tamper-proof, well taped Plastic Cover for Weather Protection, a Cardboard Box and a Corrugated Covering over the Book. Each Book itself was shrink wrapped and accompanied a complimentary Ball Pen (can be a short-term offering), a Coaster and 2 decent Bookmarks.

Most Books shipped by Flipkart came only in a Plastic Envelope. Each Book was shrink wrapped, although I found a book to be full of dust in spite of the shrink wrapping. Apparently, the shrink wrapping of the book was done, after it had become dusty. Each Book accompanied a decent Bookmark.

To my utmost surprise and in clear violation of the Legal Metrology, Packaged Commodity Rules of India, Two Books purchased and received from Flipkart were advertised and sold above the stipulated Maximum Retail Price (MRP) printed on the Books.

Upon contacting Flipkart about the aforesaid issues, leave alone refunding the excess amount charged, disgustingly Flipkart’s Customer Service did not even bother to apologize for advertising and selling the aforesaid Books above their stipulated Maximum Retail Price (MRP). It seems Flipkart is abusing its market dominance and considers itself above the Laws of our Country.

The aforesaid has forced me to check the MRP of all Books and other Products purchased by me and my family members from Flipkart.

Before buying from Flipkart, I suggest you to cross-check the Pre-Discount Prices and Accessories being advertised by Flipkart with the Product Manufacturer’s website. You may get some Unpleasant Surprises.

To make sure that you are not cheated by Flipkart or any other Seller, prior to your purchase of any Product online, confirm the ‘Prices’ and ‘Standard Accessories’ included with the Product from the Product Manufacturer’s website.

For example, Manufacturers of most Laptops include and supply Carry Cases/Backpacks for Laptops as ‘Standard/Included Accessories’ and not as ‘Optional/Paid Accessories’. Likewise, Many models of Mobile Phones come with Memory Cards and at times even Carry Cases and Bluetooth Hands-free Kits as ‘Included Accessories’.

To make extra Illegal Profits, Sellers resort to Unfair Trade Practices by not informing the Customer about all the Accessories being supplied by the Manufacturer. They make extra Illegal Profits by selling the Included Accessories ‘Separately‘ or offer the Included Accessories as a ‘Special Offer‘ at an Extra Cost. By not including the supplied Accessories with Products like Laptops and Mobile Phones, the Sellers advertise the Products ‘Without Accessories‘ at slightly lower prices, make the customers wrongly believe that their prices are lower than others and also create unfair competition in the market.

If a Seller has not provided you with all the ‘Supplied/Included Accessories’ specified on the Product Manufacturer’s website, please post and share your experience here.

The above mentioned Price Comparison was also mailed to Flipkart. An extract of the reply received from Flipkart on 11 May 2012 is as under:

“Greetings from Flipkart! We regret to inform you that we are unable to offer you further discount on the books. This is the best price we are offering and please accept our apologies for disappointing you. Please write back to us should you have any other questions or need further assistance. Regards. Flipkart Customer Support”

To be concluded.

Coming Soon…

The truth about Flipkart’s Unfair Trade Practices viz.

Non-Delivery of Ordered Products: Payments and Orders for which have been duly Accepted by Flipkart.
Misleading Advertising and Sales of Multiple Products above their stipulated Maximum Retail Prices(MRP).
Misleading Advertising and Sales of select Laptop Computers, without supplying the Accessories included by the Manufacturer.
The facts about the ‘Terms of Use’ of ‘flipkart.com’.

Note for Readers: Other than being a Customer, I, my family members, or talkabouttech.com are NOT associated/ affiliated with any online or on-air Retailer. This post has been written only for the benefit of Consumers at large. Please share this Post if you like it.