BENGALURU : Indian consumers continue to be selective in ordering non-essential items including electronics and gadgets, through e-commerce websites, inspite of delivery being permitted outside containment zones, said a new survey.
In the three weeks, starting 17 May, 36% of Indians have placed orders for non-essential items through e-commerce websites, while another 23% of consumers have placed some orders but expect to order more, according to the survey by social media community platform, LocalCircles. The survey got 16,000 responses from citizens located in over 231 districts of India.
Close to 36% of respondents to the survey said that they have not placed any orders yet. According to LocalCircles, 57% respondents of its survey were from tier 1 cities, 32% were from tier 2 geographies, while 11% respondents were from tier 3, 4 and rural districts.
On the category of products (beyond essentials) respondents plan to order via e-commerce websites in the next 30 days, 5% said gadgets like laptop, tablet, printer, mobile etc, while 6% wanted to buy appliances of white goods such as refrigerators and washing machines.
Nearly 5% of the respondents also said that they are looking to buy home improvement items and furnishings, and 8% said items including fashion, apparels, toys, gifts, were on their shopping lists. While, 54% said they plan to place orders for one or more of the above categories, including gadgets and appliances.
Consumers who are not registered or do not order via e-commerce websites were excluded from this survey.
The covid-19 pandemic has caused uncertainty amongst Indian consumers, with more than half of Indian households showing week-on-week decline in consumption, according to a weekly survey in April by Bain and Company and People Research on India’s Consumer Economy (PRICE).
Further, about 60% households attribute this decline to reduced or uncertain income, and 1 in 4 households anticipate future financial stress, according to the Bain and Company survey.
Another factor of the slow comeback in non-essential orders could also be safety.
With covid-19 cases in India peaking every day and averaging between 10,000-11,000 cases daily, 79% Indians feel the country will experience a significant rise in cases in the coming months, with 56% Indians currently feeling worried about the spread of the virus, said the survey.
Indian e-commerce firms have seen a surge in orders, and sellers coming on to their platform in May to restart businesses.
Due to work from home, e-commerce firms saw higher demand for consumer electronics, personal care products along with a spike in categories such as immunity boosters, musical instruments, hobby items and gourmet food items.
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