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• E-commerce sales in India's festive season exceeded Rs 1 lakh crore, a 20% increase from last year.
• Mobiles, electronics, and fashion were the top-selling categories, with smartphones accounting for 65% of all purchases.
• Over 85% of customers were from non-metro cities, and brands leveraged e-commerce platforms to reach these customers.
• The surge in sales underscores the growing importance of e-commerce in India's retail landscape.

The festive season in India, a period of heightened consumer activity, has seen an unprecedented surge in e-commerce sales this year. The gross merchandise value (GMV) of sales on these platforms exceeded Rs 1 lakh crore during the month-long festive season, marking a significant milestone in the growth of e-commerce in the country. This surge in sales was driven by a combination of factors, including pent-up demand, a wave of premiumisation, and increased consumption in smaller cities and towns.

The growth in sales represents a more than 20% increase from last year's festive sales on major e-commerce platforms. The first week of festive sales alone, which began on September 26, saw business worth Rs 55,000 crore, almost half of the total sales. This increase in sales was estimated at over 23% by e-commerce consultancy Datum Intelligence.

Key Drivers of Growth

The categories that gained momentum during this period were mobiles, electronics, and fashion. However, other categories such as beauty and personal care, home, and quick-commerce-led grocery also performed better than usual. Quick commerce, which saw significant traction in 2023, contributed approximately 8% to overall e-commerce growth, up from 5% last year.

Smartphones emerged as the top-selling category, with online sales accounting for almost 65% of all smartphone purchases during the festive season. The demand for premium brands surged, with more than 70% of the premium smartphone sales for Amazon coming from tier 2 and beyond cities.

More than 85% of customers came from non-metro cities, and over 50% of TV purchases came from tier 2 and 3 cities. Demand for large appliances from tier 2 cities grew by 25%, with customers preferring air conditioners and refrigerators, according to Amazon India.

Brands Capitalize on Festive Demand

As brands looked to capitalise on the festive demand, several of them strategically leveraged e-commerce platforms to cater to the aspirational customers' needs and reached the relatively less accessible customers in tier 2 cities and beyond. Newer categories such as home and kitchen appliances saw traction on quick commerce platforms, helping the platforms boost their average order values and profitability.

The festive season also saw a surge in customer visits to e-commerce platforms. Amazon registered 140 crore customer visits, with more than a 70% increase in sellers surpassing a crore in sales compared to last year. The online marketplace bolstered its fast delivery capabilities, delivering over 3 crore products to Prime members across India within the same or next day -- a staggering 26% increase from the previous year.

The facility of EMIs fueled big-ticket purchases during the sale. The overall demand for both non-gaming and gaming laptops increased by 30% YoY. Among non-gaming laptops, demand for the latest 13th Gen i3, i5, and i7 Intel-powered laptops grew by up to 10X YoY. In gaming laptops, Amazon saw strong demand for premium Intel i7 series laptops with 55% YoY growth.