BANGALORE: India's largest online retailer Flipkart has increased its minimum order value to avail of free home delivery from Rs 200 to Rs 300 signalling the e-tailer's intent to end the price competitiveness it offered, especially in the books segment.
The move comes at a time when the e-tailer, backed by Accel Partners and Tiger global, is trying to prune its cash burn and improve margins even as it looks out for further funding. Flipkart, often compared with American online retail behemoth Amazon, started off selling books at dirt cheap prices but with the latest development, industry watchers say, the poster boy of Indian e-commerce is slowly moving away from its core customer base.
Flipkart has in the last few months expanded its portfolio at an aggressive pace adding 16 new categories such as baby care, beauty, health care, mobile phones, electronic products and toys as it veers away from its dependency on selling books. In fact, competitors, including Infibeam, Homeshop18, Indiatimes shopping and Junglee, offer cheaper rates on books today without charging extra on shipping.
Edited By Cen Fox Post Team
