Flipkart is apparently afraid of Amazon, Says not in favour of FDI

Is Flipkart really afraid of Amazon?

  • Yes

    Votes: 56 87.5%

  • No

    Votes: 8 12.5%
  • Total voters
    64
  • Poll closed .
Greater FDI (e-commerce or otherwise) is inevitable!
We need an influx of funds more than anything to get the retail infrastructure up and running. Growth of multi-brand retail also means a greater chunk of the sector becoming organized. Can't see the government saying no to that, at least not forever.
 
6pack said:
And Jaitley had made such a good speech on impact of FDI in retail. I remember someone had put a YouTube vid of it in Aap or Indian political thread. Now they do 180deg turn.
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I for one found Jaitely's speech to be extremely dangerous and misleading. Reminds me of a famous quote "There are three kinds of lies - lies, damned lies and statistics". But then again, at the cost of demonizing FDI, the success of Jaitely's speech would've been the only way to highlight the urgency to develop our currently non-existent manufacturing sector.

Regarding Flipkart's stance, i don't think its wrong of them to protect their own interests. Atleast you don't hear Sachin Bansal giving a vainglorious speech under the pretext of patriotism like some 2-bit, conniving politician.
 
Sasuke_Itachi said:
It's good to protect the Indian companies till they are mature and capable.Forget all the white man's IP&un-fairness cries.
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Indian companies will never become mature and capable unless they have real competition. They "NEED" competition to become better. I will give you an example so that the situation becomes clearer:
I am a cyclist and like many other serious cyclists, I am forced to buy imported cycles because the ones being produced by the Indian companies are really really bad. They use poor quality and heavy frames and the worst and cheapest possible groupsets from big companies like shimano (so that they can advertise it). They don't bother with the sizing either. All good bicycles come in multiple sizes according to your height and inseam. It is like going to buy clothes and finding just one size. When riding for hours, bicycle fit is crucial. A typical road race goes on for hours. But Indian companies produce just one size.
Once cyclists started importing cycles from abroad these companies like Hero, BSA, etc used their political clout in Punjab to get the duties raised on bicycles to astronomical levels in 2012. They didn't improve themselves by even one percent. They are still produce garbage. They will not improve till they are forced to do so.
 
baccilus said:
Indian companies will never become mature and capable unless they have real competition. They "NEED" competition to become better. I will give you an example so that the situation becomes clearer:
I am a cyclist and like many other serious cyclists, I am forced to buy imported cycles because the ones being produced by the Indian companies are really really bad. They use poor quality and heavy frames and the worst and cheapest possible groupsets from big companies like shimano (so that they can advertise it). They don't bother with the sizing either. All good bicycles come in multiple sizes according to your height and inseam. It is like going to buy clothes and finding just one size. When riding for hours, bicycle fit is crucial. A typical road race goes on for hours. But Indian companies produce just one size.
Once cyclists started importing cycles from abroad these companies like Hero, BSA, etc used their political clout in Punjab to get the duties raised on bicycles to astronomical levels in 2012. They didn't improve themselves by even one percent. They are still produce garbage. They will not improve till they are forced to do so.
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Yes Sir,
I know what you mean, it's true as well. On the other hand imagine there were no import restrictions for cycles, the marke would be flooded with Chinese imports killing domestic companies very negatively affecting livelihood of employees,their families,suppliers,etc. Even in EU there is bicycle import tax(Anti-dumping). Best solution would be for an INdian manufacturer to make good bikes,a wish for the moment.
 
Sasuke_Itachi said:
Yes Sir,
I know what you mean, it's true as well. On the other hand imagine there were no import restrictions for cycles, the marke would be flooded with Chinese imports killing domestic companies very negatively affecting livelihood of employees,their families,suppliers,etc. Even in EU there is bicycle import tax(Anti-dumping). Best solution would be for an INdian manufacturer to make good bikes,a wish for the moment.
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The problem is nothing in this world except the fear of being wiped out will force such companies/businesses to get their act together!
It's business after all man, as long as the profits flood in, choice, riding comfort, and service (referring to the cycling business) be damned.
 
eternoMind said:
The problem is nothing in this world except the fear of being wiped out will force such companies/businesses to get their act together!
It's business after all man, as long as the profits flood in, choice, riding comfort, and service (referring to the cycling business) be damned.
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As long as one is not affected,this could be said.

A good case study is Egypt where they did this.And today there is no domestic industry(except tourism,all closed down due to inability to compete with cheap Chinese imports). So there are many angles to each problems.
 
Sasuke_Itachi said:
As long as one is not affected,this could be said.

A good case study is Egypt where they did this.And today there is no domestic industry(except tourism,all closed down due to inability to compete with cheap Chinese imports). So there are many angles to each problems.
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Bhagirath Palace in Delhi used to be the home for lot of small scale electric/electronic Indian businesses. Now, all of the lighting shops sell 90% Chinese stuff. They closed down their manufacturing businesses but they are still feeding their families, as they as they now sell imported Chinese stuff. They realized that they couldn't beat the Chinese pricing and changed themselves as per the market demand. Afterall, that's how business is done - by not cheating anyone but to move according to market demands.

Today, consumer is the king. We (guys who voted 'yes') want to pay for Amazon's services with our own money. If Flipkart wants our money then they should say, "let us provide you a better (or same) services than Amazon." We don't have to show our patriotism to support Indian companies. When Indian companies start to provide world-class services, companies like Amazon would automatically move away.
 
gauravH said:
Bhagirath Palace in Delhi used to be the home for lot of small scale electric/electronic Indian businesses. Now, all of the lighting shops sell 90% Chinese stuff. They closed down their manufacturing businesses but they are still feeding their families, as they as they now sell imported Chinese stuff. They realized that they couldn't beat the Chinese pricing and changed themselves as per the market demand. Afterall, that's how business is done - by not cheating anyone but to move according to market demands.

Today, consumer is the king. We (guys who voted 'yes') want to pay for Amazon's services with our own money. If Flipkart wants our money then they should say, "let us provide you a better (or same) services than Amazon." We don't have to show our patriotism to support Indian companies. When Indian companies start to provide world-class services, companies like Amazon would automatically move away.
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I agree with you in principle.But Flipkart closes down,Amazon has monoply,prices increase and then?
 
How much money will FK raise in their next round if Amazon is allowed to sell in India ?

Will it be the same or less. Add that over a few years and the result is FK is no longer there.

Course this assumes there is nothing FK can do to compete. Not true.
 
I recalled just now that flipkart founders saying they will never sell the company. So that option never arises.

How much will flipkart raise in next rounds? Well depends on their sales figures and valuation of the company at that point of time.
Flipkart right now have all they want. money not required right now at least for next 8 months or till amazon makes some impact.

Lets see how flipkart does business after amazon and walmart enters india. From what i heard, amazon just needs 2 months to launch its own store after the official FDI announcement. They have everything ready in place.. People, warehouse, machinery etc.
 
asingh said:
Not really that we all are conniving and thieves....! :)

It is really not in our culture to be courteous to strangers for business transactions. If someone is a guest in the house, we lay out the works (something which foreigners really do not do), but out on the streets India is literally a battle-ground. Graft, one-upmanship in a deal, short-fall honesty stems from the dog-eat-dog ideology we are all taught from childhood. This is obvious and pertinent since India == 1B+ people. Aggravating this situation is the hive culture we indulge in. Name a societal border, and India discriminates and fences populace, egged on by politicians and Bollywood at the same time. We Indians love to separate / ear-mark each other, while singing out the Incredible Diversity of our Nation. It is laughable and hypocritical bundled into one..!

I agree: Going to the Western world is shocking the first time. People are honest, amicable, and courteous. We lack these virtues, and will never acquire them as normal nature, not even second nature. Our streets are a jungle (read online business too) but homes are a comfortable paradise.
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Well said![DOUBLEPOST=1403690929][/DOUBLEPOST]I used to like flipkart and has bought stuff worth thousands and have recommended it to many people. Sad that they have stopped selling anything to the people of my state. Amazon is doing a fine job, if not better than fk. Amazon has stopped cod option in my state recently, but it's okay as they are still willing to sell their stuff to us on other payment options.

Just tried Cochin pincode and they deliver there, but not to the capital city or other good towns. weird..
 
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I know. why they call it Indian company i still Wonder.

Jambumali said:
At the current shareholding, FK is not exactly Indian.
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Flipkart Investment until now

  • July 2014: $1 Billion From DST Global, Tiger Global, Accel Partners Etc
  • May 2014: $210 million from DST Global, Tiger Global, Naspers, and Iconiq Capital.
  • October 2013: $160 million from Dragoneer Investment Group, Morgan Stanley Investment Management, Sofina and Vulcan Capital and existing investor Tiger Global
  • July 2013: $200 million from Naspers, Accel Partners, Tiger Global, and ICONIQ Capital.
  • August 2012: $150 million from Naspers and Tiger Global.
  • June 2011: $20 million from Tiger Global.
  • June 2010: Up to $10 million from Tiger Global.
  • November 2009: $1 million from Accel Partners.
 
Tiger had invested in Letsbuy and ultimately forced them to merge with FK. I really miss those Letsbuy deals :(
Waiting for the next hopeful, who wants top-line growth over everything else :)
 
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