The Hindu Business Line : Festival shopping on the Net surges to Rs 115 cr

ONLINE sales during the festival season jumped a whopping 117 per cent to Rs 115 crore from Rs 53 crore in 2004-05, as more Indians shopped on the Internet, according to the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI).

"Online sales clocked across over 8,10,000 transactions in three weeks and delivered a 135 per cent increase in transactions. These figures clearly show that online shopping has truly come of age and consumers are keen to shop on the Net. Festival shopping is the prime time for multi-channel retailers to attract new shoppers," an IAMAI release said here.

Effective customer communication on products, reduced shipping costs and timely delivery helped online marketers to seize a slice of the Rs 115-crore sales. These purchases accounted for over 10 per cent of total Indian online sales estimated at Rs 1,180 crore for this year sans travel categories over a three-week festival period.

"With e-commerce revenues set to cross Rs 1,180 crore for 2005-06 and a growing Internet user base currently at about 32 million, it has been a sparkling Diwali and Eid in 2005-06, as e-commerce sales crossed to a whopping Rs 115 crore in the three-week period. "Online retailers have consistently seen growing consumer interest in buying Diwali and Eid gifts online. Each festival season, Indians seem to be leaving their shopping for the last minute and this year was no exception, as we sold 61 per cent of the gifts in the two weeks prior to Diwali day, compared to 54 per cent last year," the IAMAI President, Ms Preeti Desai, said.

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Festival shopping on the Net surges to Rs 115 cr