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The Indian e-commerce market may be on a high, but the tele-shopping segment is rising rapidly.
At a time when players such as Flipkart and Amazon are betting big on the rising use of smartphones and increased internet penetration, organised tele-shopping firms such as HomeShop 18, Naaptol, Star CJ Alive, and Asianet are bullish on their prospects thanks to the growth of television.
The tele-shopping market in India is estimated to be worth ₹2,000 crore and has been growing at more than 40 per cent over the last four-five years on the back of growing cable and direct-to-home connections and its unique interactive nature.
More interactive According to Kenny Shin, CEO of Star CJ Alive, TV shopping is more popular than catalogue or online buying as it is more interactive and can happen in various regional languages. The channel, a joint venture of STAR Asia and South Korean home shopping major CJ O Shopping, sells everything from apparel to cars. The shopping channel has garnered around 50 million viewers in the last four years and is growing at 60 per cent annually.
“Consumers find the touch-and-feel factor here which is missing in the online segment. Consumers get to see demos on TV before ordering. Even an illiterate person can buy on television,” Shin added.
The channel has five million registered customers and aims to increase the customer base to 8 million in the next two-three years.
There is also increasing interest from private investors for the tele-shopping segment. Naaptol is in talks to raise $50 million (around ₹300 crore) in a third round of funding soon.
An edge for players HomeShop18 filed for a $75-million IPO on the Nasdaq soon after raising $14 million in October last. According to experts tracking the segment, all tele-shopping players will get an edge over online players once they enter the e-commerce space.
HomeShop18 and Star CJ are already into e-commerce while Naaptol plans to get in this year.
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