To tap the Tier-II and Tier-III cities, Royzez.com, the latest entrant, plans to invest Rs 175 crore by the end of this financial year on marketing, warehousing and automation for expansion.
Founded in 2014, Royzez.com, a self-funded venture, is the sister concern of Kaka Group, one of the world's largest exporters of carpets. The company has an inventory of 200,000 products, which is expected to go up to about six million by next month under categories, ranging from fashion apparel, electronic gadgets, home decor and kitchen products. As part of its plans, the company wants to spend more than Rs 75 crore on warehousing, delivery ramp-up and automation. It has kept aside Rs 100 crore for marketing and advertising.
"We are not going to limit ourselves just to tier-III sectors. Our plan is to enter the remote corners of India which are still largely untouched by the e-commerce revolution. We would be opening a warehouse in Bhadoi, Uttar Pradesh," said Nitish Roy, founder and chief visionary officer at Royzez.com. At present, it has two warehouses -one in Gurgaon and another in Bhiwandi, Maharashtra.
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He added that with a warehouse and delivery centre in that region they would be able to expand in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and other nearby states. Also to create buzz and add customers, the company has come up with local advertisement campaigns.
According to Rahul Sethi, chief operating officer and head marketing in tier-II and III towns, they are taking more orders on phone than through website or app. "People prefer to call us and ask about the product. They find it reassuring, so through our advertisement campaigns/billboards in Allahabad, Lucknow and cities in Bihar, we are encouraging people to call us and place orders," he said.
As part of its festival season plans, the company is all set to kickstart its television and advertisement campaign next month. It is at present ramping up its inventory and vendor base.
"Keeping in mind the festive season, by next month we will have an inventory of around 6 million products under various categories. At present we have around 326 vendors and around 1,700 vendors want to sell through our website. So by next month our vendor base would increase as well," added Sethi.
Though a relatively smaller player in the segment dominated by e-commerce giants such as Flipkart, Snapdeal and Amazon, Royzez believes that its connect would help it carve a niche for itself. "With the current internet penetration scenario of India, which is growing at a 30 percent rate every year, the industry foresees its growth as substantial. So, there is a huge scope in the market. Personal manager, instant quality checks, centralised returns for assuring an easy and hassle free shopping experience are our USPs and these differentiate us from others," said Roy.
