From realty to cars: It's raining sales; here's what's on offer this Diwali

With the festival season about to begin, consumers are willing to go more-than-a-little overboard in their purchases, while companies also get a little more lavish with their offers. From mid-September to December-end, e-tailers, financial institutions, white goods dealers, auto majors and builders will flood the market with offers.

It appears even Apple is advancing the India launch time of its iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus smartphones to September 29 to ensure the widest possible sales window this festive season. According to reports, pre-bookings will start on September 22 in India and there will be a special launch-day cashback offer for consumers using Citibank cards. That will bring the India pricing on a par with the US.

Here's a roundup of what's on offer: 

From real estate to cash discounts on cars: Offers are pouring in 

Amazon’s Great Indian Festival Sale will be held between September 21 and 24. Flipkart will hold its Big Billion Days sale during the same time. A couple of weeks back, the country’s largest bank, State Bank of India (SBI), announced waiver up to 100 percent of processing fee on car loans, personal gold loans and personal loans. And, a number of car companies like Honda, Nissan and Mahindra and Mahindra are giving hefty discounts. Also, leading developers all across the country are giving offers, especially on their ready-to-move-in flats that have received occupancy certificates. They are pushing these offers by saying that you can end up saving 12 per cent goods and services tax (GST).  Read all about it here

The four-day Paytm sale starts on Wednesday

Paytm Mall, owned by Paytm E-commerce, has announced a four-day ‘Mera Cashback Sale’ from this Wednesday to Saturday.This is its first festive season sale and is the third to start one, after Flipkart and Amazon. In all, the three are spending close to Rs 2,500 crore on festive sales this year, it is estimated. The gross merchandise value of the trio’s sales might exceed $3.5 billion (Rs 22,400 crore), believe some, in the four to five days of sale this year.

Customers at Paytm Mall’s sale will get Rs 501 crore in assured cashback, says the company, as it works with brand-authorised stores, large retail chains and small shopkeepers to host a range of products. The sale will offer gift items, appliances, mobiles, apparel, footwear and the like at cashbacks of 15-100 per cent. Additionally, 100 per cent cashback to 25 phone buyers every day; also, 200 customers will receive 100g Paytm Gold every day. Get all the details here 

Personalisation another theme this festive season 

Flipkart would start offering personalisation to its customers, targeting them with specific products and solutions, as it looks to treble sales. 

Flipkart has already tried some of the measures — audience targeting, offers such as ‘buy now and pay later’ for loyal customers and offering instalments for purchases on debit cards — over the past few months, including during its ‘Big10’ sale in May. It has contracted with four top banks to offer both an option to shop online using debit cards and pay in instalments based on pre-approved limits. Read more here 

Sony, Panasonic, Haier line up freebies, discounts for festive season

Consumer durable makers expect to clock up to 40 per cent sales growth this festive season by offering freebies and discounts to woo consumers, hoping to put behind the woes they faced in the run-up to GST roll-out. Manufacturers, including Sony, LG, Panasonic and Haier, are pinning hopes on the pent-up demand post-GST after destocking by trade partners in June, to keep their sales counter ticking. Read more here 

Amazon India promises US shopping feel this Diwali, may set up more warehouses to accommodate mounting orders

The online retailer said that it would host its Great Indian Festival sale on September 20-24. The firm would open the sale for its Prime members on September 20, and for the rest the next day.Amazon Fashion is bringing in the product search experience available in the US, including models offering a 360-degree view of apparel. It has two million fashion products and has launched over 200 brands in the last 18 months. More details here 

The company is also on a war footing to expand its large appliances base that has seen a 400 per cent growth in the past one year. The online marketplace hopes it would be among the top four verticals in the near future.  Amazon India has already commissioned 12 dedicated fulfillment centres across nine states in order to cater to the spurt in sales of bulky products, which includes air-conditioners, televisions and refrigerators, among others. However, senior executives claim that due to the high demand throughout the year, they are now running out of space.Amazon is also providing after-sales services either on its own or in collaboration with the appliances brand. Read more details here 

Flipkart announces annual 'Big Billion Days' sale on Sept 20-24, to focus on small-town buyers

With a $4 billion war chest, the e-commerce major is looking at deepening its play in the country’s hinterland. A great example of this focus on small-town buyers this year is offers on mobile phones costing as low as Rs 2,000 as compared to last year where offers began on devices costing upwards of Rs 5,000. It’s the same across categories, with the company saying it has put in a lot of effort on curating the right kind of products for buyers outside of metros. More details here