‘E-Comm Grows 36% In Oct-Dec Period’

The last quarter of 2020 saw e-commerce order volume growing by 36 per cent in India with the personal care, beauty and wellness (PCB&W) segment leading the flock, according to a report.

In the October-December 2020 period, PCB&W, and FMCG and Healthcare (F&H) categories recorded 95 per cent and 46 per cent surge year-on-year, says the Q4-2020 – E-commerce Trends Report of Unicommerce and Kearney. Tier II and III cities accounted for a 90 per cent YOY incremental volume and value growth, it says.

The report, which assesses the e-commerce growth in Q4 2020 with the sector-wise analysis, says brand websites reported a 94 per cent volume growth in the fourth quarter of 2020 as compared to the same period last year.

The last quarter of 2020 saw e-commerce grow by 36 per cent and 30 per cent YOY in terms of order volume and gross merchandise value (GMV) respectively, while the average order

value declined by 5 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2020 as compared to the same period last year.

The e-commerce industry had reported a 26 per cent order volume growth in the previous corresponding period vis-a-vis the year-ago period. The growth was accelerated as an effect of the COVID-19 lockdowns that led to a massive change in consumer habits with many new shoppers and sellers going online, the report adds.

Electronics category witnessed 12 per cent YOY growth in the average order value (AOV) in addition to a 27 per cent YOY growth in volumes. Fashion and accessories continue to be the largest segment by volume. It reported 37 per cent YOY volume growth but AOV declined by 7 per cent YOY in the fourth quarter of 2020 as compared to the same period last year.

With people still working from home, the growth of the category is supported by the purchase of lower-value products such as comfort wear and loungewear.

The restriction on movement led to many first-time online grocery shoppers make it to an important category for mainstream e-commerce players like Flipkart and Amazon.

Tier II and III cities reported significant gains in the share of overall e-commerce sales  volume with the slice growing up to 46 per cent from 32 per cent and value share reaching 43 per cent from 26 per cent during the fourth quarter of 2020 as against same period last year.

FMCG & Healthcare is the fastest growing category in Tier I and metropolitan areas with 150 per cent-plus growth, says the report, which covered trends related to the overall e-commerce

growth, region-wise consumer demand and direct-to-consumer (D2C) trends and how it affects the industry in the post-COVID-19 world.

Unicommerce CEO Kapil Makhija says the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been widely visible ever since the lockdown was announced in March last year. “The e-commerce industry has emerged as the backbone of the retail industry and small and big players have realised the immense potential that e-commerce holds.”

Partner, Kearney, Siddharth Jain, says: “The Personal Care, Beauty & Wellness category is an incredibly interesting area of growth online, as it has seen stupendous volume growth of over 95 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2020, as compared to the same period

last year.”