Flipkart-owned Jabong dabbles with VIP slots to take on Amazon Prime

Flipkart-owned online fashion major Jabong is testing waters with its own version of the loyalty programme to take on Amazon Prime.

The company, all set to launch its fourth edition of end of season Big Brand Sale (BBS), is going to give away 100,000 ‘VIP slots’ as part of its loyalty programme. 

The four-day shopping event will be held between July 27 and July 30. 

While delinking the current plan to offer ‘VIP slots’, Gunjan Soni, Jabong’s head and chief marketing officer at Myntra, said this was part of the innovations the company was planning in the run-up to the launch of the loyalty programme. 

“We will have a loyalty programme on our platform and have been doing innovations towards it. We will, however, come back with a much more holistic approach. Though we do not reveal the process on how we would be giving out the slots, it would be a combination of the number of times one had shopped. One can earn a VIP slot by taking part in games on the platform in the run-up to the sale,” according to Soni.

The company also plans to launch a host of other services and verticals to make the platform exclusive and better than competition. In the run-up to festival season sales, the company is gearing up to launch a luxury store in line with its plan to sell premium products. 

The fashion major is offering 400,000 styles from 3,000 international and Indian brands at a discount of 51 to 80 per cent across product categories. Jabong is targeting 100 per cent sales growth over the previous edition of sale last July.

A few years ago, Flipkart tried its hands with a loyalty programme, Flipkart First, but was not able to get much traction. The domestic e-tailer’s biggest rival, Amazon India, with its mix of fashion, grocery and in-app entertainment play for its Prime, has gained 100 million paid members in India, according to industry insiders.

Financial services platform Paytm also recently introduced ‘Paytm Loyalty Points’. Customers can earn them by doing multiple activities within its ecosystem, and all cash backs received on the platform would be accumulated as loyalty points. 

“These points can be redeemed across online platforms as well as over five million merchant outlets that accept Paytm,” the company had said earlier.

The four-day fashion festival on Jabong would see deals on brands, including Calvin Klein, Next, Adidas, Nike, Guess and Superdry. Shoppers can avail 10 per cent cashback using HDFC credit and debit cards of up to Rs 750 on a minimum spend of Rs 3,000. New customers will get free shipping on their first orders.