Flipkart Wholesale unveils working capital loan for kiranas

E-commerce major Flipkart Group’s business-to-business (B2B) marketplace Flipkart Wholesale has launched a set of credit programmes to help kiranas manage their working capital requirements.

Named ‘Easy Credit’, the programme is launched in partnership with IDFC FIRST Bank and other fintech firms, the company said in a statement.

Under the credit offerings, kiranas can avail working capital loans at ‘zero cost in two minutes’ through an end-to-end digital on-boarding, the company claimed.

“We believe our new credit plan is tailored to solve local challenges that kiranas in India face and will help them manage their cash flow and improve their purchase experience on our platform, thereby ensuring that the benefits of digitisation trickle to the entire B2B retail ecosystem,” Adarsh Menon, senior vice president and head - Flipkart Wholesale, said.

The credit line will range from Rs 5,000 to Rs 2 lakh with an interest-free period of up to 14 days.

It also offers flexible repayment options through cash and online transfers as well as instant refunds in case of order cancellation.
 
“India’s kirana stores account for over two-thirds of the country’s retail landscape. This traditional trade is now evolving in terms of retail formats and business models.

As a bank with a digital-first approach and focus on serving the retail ecosystem, we are keen to contribute to the growth of this segment. The partnership with Flipkart gives us an opportunity to enable kiranas to access formal credit and scale up business,” Amit Kumar, head-retail liabilities and branch banking – IDFC FIRST Bank, said.

Flipkart Wholesale recently announced that it will triple its reach by July-December 2021.

The marketplace plans to serve kirana stores in 2,700 Indian cities and grow its supplier base by 58% in 2021.

The company said it had witnessed 17% growth from the comparable period last year in its kirana customer base during first half of the year in the period of January-June 2021.

The projected growth for the second half of the year is expected to be 33% year-on-year.
 
Flipkart launched Flipkart Wholesale in 2020 after it had acquired the cash-and-carry business of parent company, Walmart, under the label Best Price.

Flipkart Wholesale claims to serve over 1.5 million members across the country, which include kiranas, retailers, HoReCa (hotels, restaurants and cafeterias) and O&I (offices and institutions).