Date 30th SeptemberJabong's Jan-June losses soar 46%, in talks for saleNEW DELHI00 saw its losses widen at a time when it's been put on the block for a possible sale. The company's losses, on the back of heavy discounting, for the first six months of this year stood at Rs 227.4 crore compared to almost Rs 155 crore in the corresponding period last year. Net revenue also did not see a healthy rise as the Gurgaon-based online retailer saw sales grow moderately by 26% to Rs 410.7 crore compared to Rs 324.7 crore in January-June last year. TOI obtained these numbers from the latest report released by Rocket Internet, the Berlin-based incubator of internet companies. Jabong has been struggling at multiple fronts, starting from senior-level churn at the organization to continuous erosion of market share. Mounting losses have only worsened the situation for the company. Out of the five founding members, four have already left the company. Jabong was not very long ago seen as biggest competitor to Myntra, which was acquired by Flipkart.On a brighter note, the e-tailer's total number of orders grew over 17% to 2.7 million while transactions were up 37.5% compared to the corresponding period last year. So did its gross merchandize value, or GMV in e-commerce parlance, which went up 41.3% to Rs 719.7 crore from Rs 509.5 crore for the first six months last year. GMV is the total sales generated by merchants on an e-tailer's platform without taking into account discounts and returns. The US e-commerce behemoth Amazon was in talks to acquire Jabong last year but valuation mismatch derailed the deal. Jabong was eyeing a valuation of $1 billion when merger talks started with Amazon. According to multiple reports, a possible sale of the company is in the works as multiple players, including Alibaba-backed Paytm, Aditya Birla Group and Snapdeal, have shown interest. AB Kinnevik, a Swedish investment firm, and Rocket Internet, the two key investors in Jabong, are seeking a valuation in the range of around $ 800 million, according to media reports. In September last year, Jabong was merged with Global Fashion Group (GFG) along with other global e-tailers from Rocket's portfolio, valuing the combined entity at about 1.3 billion-euros. Jabong raised $100 million last year. On the other hand, its competitors like Snapdeal and Flipkart, which have been pushing their fashion verticals, raised $1.6 billion and $3.4 billion, respectively, in the same period while Amazon has plans to pump in $5 billion into the fast-growing Indian market.Summary :Heavy discounting have led Rocket Internet-backed fashion e-tailer Jabong into huge losses of Rs 227.4 Cr.Net revenue also did not see a healthy improvement as the sales grew by 26% to Rs 410.7 Cr. Company is facing problems with retaining the senior level employees to maintaining its market share. There is a growth in the e-commerce business to Rs 719.7 Cr. Amazon wanted to acquire Jabong with a valuation less than $1 billion, however it did not worked out due to mis-match valuation. Jabong merged with Global Fashion Group (GFG) along with other global e-tailers from Rocket's portfolio, valuing the combined entity at about 1.3 billion-euros. Jabong raised $100 million last year. On the other hand, its competitors like Snapdeal and Flipkart, which have been pushing their fashion verticals, raised $1.6 billion and $3.4 billion, respectively, in the same period while Amazon has plans to pump in $5 billion into the fast-growing Indian market.Date 9th SeptemberJawbone bets big on Indian smart wearables market; partners Amazon NEW DELHI: After Fitbit, it is now the turn of US-based Jawbone to foray into the Indian market with its range of fitness bands as it looks to tap into the growing health monitoring devices market in the country. Jawbone has introduced three new devices, priced between Rs 4,999 and Rs 14,999, that will be available through e-commerce firm Amazon. The company's 'UP' app and Smart Coach system can help people better understand their health and well-being by tracking sleep, activity and nutrition, Jawbone Product Manager (UP app) Jayanth Chakravarthy told PTI. "India is a huge market for us. Consumers here are both design savvy and hugely interested in the latest consumer technology. "With heart disease and diabetes remaining two of the major causes of death in India, keeping a healthy and active lifestyle has never been more important," he said. Fitness gadget makers are betting big on markets like India that have a young population. With a booming smartphone industry, device makers like Xiaomi and Yu are confident that the wearables category in India will grow at a stronger pace in the coming years. The UP app, powered by Smart Coach, turns user data into personalised guidance, giving them actionable insights and challenges to help improve their sleep, activity and diet. Headquartered in San Francisco, Jawbone's products are available in over 40 countries globally. Interestingly, Fitbit had also entered the Indian market through Amazon. It has now expanded into the offline market in partnership with Croma, Helios and Reliance Retail. Jawbone competes with the likes of Fitbit, Goqii and other fitness trackers from companies like Nike globally. According to research firm Gartner, the global wearable electronic devices for fitness shipments are forecast to reach 91.3 million units in 2016 from 73.01 million units in 2013. As per a IDC report, the global wearable shipment for April-June 2015 quarter grew by a whopping 223.2 per cent to 18.1 million units from 5.6 million units in the year-ago period. Summary:With the growth in the health monitoring devices in India, Jawbones (US based Company - products available in over 40 countries globally) has entered into the Indian markets with wide ranges of products. Initially introducing 3 products on Amazon priced between Rs 4,999 and Rs 14,999. The company have come up with UP app and Smart Coach system which will help people to understand their health and well being by tracking sleep, activity & nutrition. The major reasons of death remains heart disease and diabetes in India, making it a hugh market for the company. Fitness gadget makers are betting big on markets like India that have a young population. With a booming smartphone industry, device makers like Xiaomi and Yu are confident that the wearables category in India will grow at a stronger pace in the coming years. The global wearable electronic devices for fitness shipments are forecast to reach 91.3 million units in 2016 from 73.01 million units in 2013. As per a IDC report, the global wearable shipment for April-June 2015 quarter grew by a whopping 223.2 per cent to 18.1 million units from 5.6 million units in the year-ago period. Date 14th SeptemberVivo to focus on retail network, 4G devices NEW DELHI: Chinese smartphone maker VivoBSE 4.86 % Mobile is aggressively strengthening its physical retail distribution network, especially in India's semi-urban areas, and has no plans to sell through an ecommerce platform for now, in stark contrast to the approach of most of its rivals who are betting big on the online channel. Vivo, a part of Guangdong-based BBK Electronics Corporation, has in less than a year sold more than a half a million smartphones in India since entering the market in December 2014, and is coming up with an assembly facility in Greater Noida that will have a capacity to produce 1 million devices a month. It also plans to spend Rs 200 crore this year on marketing and promotion. "We have established our own strong distribution network in 200 cities in 28 states and are planning to expand retail chain further in tier 3 cities and rural areas to strengthen to get opportunity in these markets," Vivo Mobile Chief Executive Alex Feng told ET. Vivo is now focusing on developing its retail networks and exclusive service centers and is currently working with more than 7,000 partners and 10,000 retailers across Indian geographies. India is a huge market and holds enormous potential, the company said, adding that the India region is an essential part of the Vivo's global strategy. "We have dealers in tier 2 and 3 cities and we are also opening more company-owned service centers to ensure hassles-free service to our consumers," Feng said. The Chinese device maker said that the company already has a strong consumer base for its V and Y series of smartphones which are popular in smaller cities and towns. Cutting apart from competitors such as Xiaomi, Gionee, Motorola and Micromax, Vivo has no plans to partner with e-Commerce marketplaces as the company want consumers to feel and experience device features and capabilities before making a purchase decision. "In future, we may plan to partner few e-commerce portals or can even have our own but for now online sales is not in our strategic plan," Feng added. There has been a paradigm shift from feature phones to smart phones in India and "we thought it as the right opportunity to foray into the Indian market," the company's top executive said. India has a huge untapped potential and large customer base, the Chinese company said, adding that demographically, 60% of the Indian population comprises of youngsters and the market is moving rapidly from 2G to 3G and to 4G now. In the past eight months, the Chinese device maker has launched nine handset models in a price range between Rs 6,000 to Rs 30,000 and is also anticipating massive 4G growth led by telecom operators such as Bharti AirtelBSE 0.46 % and Reliance Jio Infocomm. "This year all of our new models support 4G. We already realized that 4G is coming with a great momentum, and it will bring a lot changes in the smartphone market. We keep track of all the industry moves and are looking for new opportunities he says. Feng said that their upcoming facility will be company owned, and will be used to serve Indian customers as the demand is increasing dramatically, and added that Vivo may consider smartphone exports from India to other markets in future.

Summary :Vivo Mobile is aggressively strengthening its physical retail distribution network

Date 22nd SeptemberLuxury retail feels the pinch as demand falls, sales fail to pick up NEW DELHI: Retailers selling high-end fashion and consumer products in India are worried about tepid sales. Retailers and their investors are feeling the pinch from disappearing buyers, falling demand and overall excitement, and the blame partly falls on the government's drive against black money as it is preventing the rich from splurging. "Selling luxury is like selling dreams, and the fact is that people are not blindly buying those dreams anymore," said the brand head of an international luxury menswear brand, who didn't wish to be named as his saying so would make him answerable to his investors. Traditionally, summer months have been low for luxury retailers in India as most people do their purchases while travelling abroad. However, even the usual sales are getting affected now. In Chennai, builder Ajay Agarwal invested in a small mall on a posh road in the city to house luxury retailers like LV, Jimmy Choo and a watch brand. The brands opened shops in 2012 and within one year shut them too. "My experience is that the market is not ready for luxury yet. The businesses are not sustainable," said Agarwal, who is now looking to tap non-luxury brands for the real estate. Luxury retail in India is failing to pick up due to a variety of reasons, including low demand, high rentals, import duties, increasing online sales and consumers' preference to buy abroad. The cost of marketing is also very high, which puts extra pressure on the cash registers. On top of that comes the measures to check black money. "Luxury retail is doing average right now and waiting in the wing. One does not hear of massive sales and growth numbers," said Darshan Mehta, chief executive of Reliance Brands that retails a host of luxury and bridge-to-luxury labels in India. Brands which are already here do not know where to go and those not, do not know how to get here, he said. "Due to various business and legal challenges, most of the operating luxury brands are already under stress as well as new luxury brand(s) intending to enter the Indian market directly are taking a conservative view on entering India," said Delhi-based lawyer Varun Bajaj, who works closely with such brands. India is predominantly a "mass product" market and only has a beginner-level luxury market, which does not attract the major luxury global players to enter the Indian market direct, he said. Sellers mostly refrain from going on record about such concerns, but the sentiment has definitely taken a plunge and is hitting the confidence in India's luxury consumption story.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/cons-products/fashion-/-cosmetics-/-jewellery/luxury-retail-feels-the-pinch-as-demand-falls-sales-fail-to-pick-up/articleshow/48168566.cms

Date 21st SeptemberPaytm gets $500m refill from AlibabaNEW DELHI: Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding has made a direct investment in Paytm, along with its affiliate, Ant Financial, together pumping around $500 million into the Noida-based digital payments and commerce player. Paytm is operated by One97 Communications. The strategic backing of Alibaba, which is also an investor in Snapdeal, gives Paytm a bigger war chest in a highly competitive domestic online commerce market right before the festive season kicks in. "Alibaba directly would have 20% stake and Ant Financial's shareholding will come down to 20%," a person directly aware of the deal said.Ant Financial, an existing investor in Paytm, earlier held 25% stake in the company when it committed an investment of $575 million in February this year. At the time, it had injected $200 million in the first tranche as part of the February agreement. The fresh capital of $500 million will include the remaining $375 million which Ant Financial was expected to invest in Paytm based on the company's performance. Both Alibaba and Paytm did not disclose the financial details of the agreement.Post this transaction, the Alibaba group will hold 40% stake in the Vijay Shekhar Sharma-led company, making it the largest shareholder in the Delhi-based company. Multi-stage fund SAIF Partners, Paytm's early investor, will see its stake trim down to 30%, while Paytm's founder and chairman Sharma would hold 21% stake post the new financing round, down by 6%, sources said. Paytm is expected to use the fresh capital infusion to develop its mobile commerce and payment platforms as well as make investments in marketing, technology and talent. Investing in Paytm will enhance the ability of Alibaba and Ant Financial to tap opportunities in India's fast-growing mobile e-commerce marketplace and digital finance industry, the companies said in a statement. Commenting on the deal, Daniel Zhang, CEO, Alibaba Group said, "India is an important emerging market with strong e-commerce potential, and we look forward to partnering with Paytm to deliver innovative products and services to consumers. This investment will further expand Alibaba Group's global footprint to India's thriving mobile commerce market." Paytm started as pure play wallet company but has now been building itself as an m-commerce firm. This is in line with the company's plan to battle it out with the likes of Flipkart, Snapdeal and Amazon.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/tech-news/Paytm-gets-500m-refill-from-Alibaba/articleshow/49160355.cms?

Date 29th SeptemberApple's India sales target: 12 lakh iPhones in one quarterNEW DELHI: Apple is gearing up for a blockbuster opening of new iPhone devices in India as it targets to sell 12 lakh devices in the October-December quarter, nearly equivalent to its total sales for whole of last year. The new devices are expected to contribute around 60% of total sales in the quarter. The full-year sales target has been scaled up to nearly 35 lakh devices, a number seen only in some of the company's biggest markets. The company is also lining up a massive marketing and promotional budget, which is upwards of Rs 300 crore in October-December quarter. "This is big, considering that the spend in the whole of last year was around Rs 115-120 crore," top sources in the company told TOI. The new iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus will hit the stores on October 16 and Apple expects a frenzy for the devices that saw sales of over 1.3 crore units within three days of their launch in the US. The devices in India are expected to be priced from Rs 60,000 onwards, though the exact price will be known at the opening. "For Apple, it will be unprecedented numbers in India, and the company has asked its top distributors to go all out and sell aggressively, as this is the high-potential festive period. The target of 12 lakh devices in just one quarter displays the company's aggression and confidence on the Indian market," sources added. The festive demand and craze for the latest iPhone devices will be booster factors and Apple is likely to announce attractive buy-back schemes and other campaigns. Apple recently unshackled its India strategy and did away with the practice of assigning regions and exclusive sales channels to distributors. The move, which led to cut-throat competition among its various sales partners, coincided with the entry of Softbank-controlled global distributor Brightstar into India that has - within six months of starting operations - moved ahead of Ingram Micro and Redington to become the brand's biggest seller. "Brightstar, which is led by former Redington top executive Puneet Narang, has been leading the charge for the company and now contributes nearly 40% of Apple's sales. It is expected to play a major role in the sales of new iPhone devices," sources said. The aggressive push by Apple comes at a time when the company has decided to move out of the fringes and go big in India. Apple plans to open 500 iOS stores in India and the expansion includes entry into smaller towns and cities such as Amritsar, Pathankot, Moga, Coimbatore, Trichy, Nagpur and Nasik. For the new cities, Apple is planning smaller stores, which can range between 300-600 sq ft against the over 2,000 sq ft size of existing stores in bigger cities.

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