As a part of our #Outlook14 series, we asked heads of e-commerce companies – HomeShop18, Snapdeal, Amazon India, Lenskart, Infibeam, Myntra and DotZot (e-commerce logistics company) about their focus areas for 2014, and the challenges that the e-commerce ecosystem needs to address. MediaNama: Which according to you were the top developments and roadblocks with respect to the e-commerce segment in 2013? Why? Sundeep Malhotra, HomeShop18 - Shopping from tier-2 cities (non-metros) - People continue to buy gadgets and electronics but clothing and fashion are gaining momentum - The shift to the marketplace model by most leading etailers - The rise of m-commerce and the way ahead for this segment - The entry of Amazon. It has upped the competition a few notches - Increasing focus on better interface for shopping through product videos to compensate for the lack of touch-and-feel Vishal Mehta, Founder CEO Infibeam - The industry registered huge shift of shoppers from offline to online. - Sales and traffic both increased by almost 300% - 500 %. - Industry witnessed traffic from non-urban cities. - More and more retail categories showcased - Some major roadblocks to be pointed is policy framework for retail industry in specifically online, logistics, taxation etc. Kunal Bahl, Snapdeal - Overall, this year saw a front and center battle between the two business models of e-commerce - Inventory-led and Marketplace Model. Amit Agarwal, Vice President & Country Manager, Amazon India - The mobile internet traffic now outweighs PC traffic. With increasing penetration of smartphones, India is…
