Flipkart wholesale app witnesses spike in customer base

Flipkart Wholesale app recorded a surge in its customer base by around 75 per cent ever since its launch in September this year, while the monthly transactions on the platform increased by more than 90 per cent.

Owned by Walmart, Flipkart’s B2B platform was launched in the market with the acquisition of its parent company’s wholesale business in India. It deals with cash-and-carry business and witnessed 10x growth ever since it forayed into e-commerce. During the nationwide lockdown, the cash-to-carry business – Best Price, enabled its members to place orders online and have products delivered to them which led to a huge surge in the order volumes.

In the recent times, retailers have been increasingly opting e-commerce as a preferred mode of doing business. Thus, most of the customers of Flipkart Wholesale app and Best Price app are based in small cities. Today, Flipkart Wholesale app, that offers fashion products, is present across 23 cities that are mainly Tier 2 and Tier 3.

“Flipkart Wholesale app records 75 per cent month-on-month growth in customer base and over 95 per cent are from tier 2 and tier 3 cities across nine states in the country,” said a statement by the Walmart-owned Flipkart’s B2B platform. In the fashion category, the company claimed to have witnessed around 50 per cent month-on-month growth in the number of suppliers.

Adarsh Menon, Senior Vice-President and Head, Flipkart Wholesale and Walmart India, said that the company has constantly worked towards creating a robust ecosystem that caters to the growing needs of kiranas all the while helping MSMEs in accessing the pan-India market in an effective manner.

Leveraging Flipkart’s technological capabilities and Walmart’s experience and expertise, the B2B marketplace has had a smooth ride so far. In fact, Flipkart India Private Ltd, Flipkart’s wholesale arm, reported around 12 per cent increase in its FY20 revenues – from almost Rs 31,000 crore in FY19 to over Rs 34,000 crore in 2020.