DTC V/S MARKETPLACE: GAME ON

Brands that aggressively followed DTC strategies in FY21, are driving India’s online fashion retail growth with them reporting 66 per cent order volume growth as compared to the previous financial year.

Brand websites are driving online fashion retail growth over marketplaces; the former reported 66 per cent order volume growth in FY21 as compared to FY20, says Fashion e-commerce Report: FY2021 vs FY2020, a new report from Unicommerce, a market leader in e-commerce enablement software for multi-channel, warehouse management and Omnichannel services.

“The fashion industry in India is setting new benchmarks of innovation in the e-commerce industry. The rising adoption of DTC (direct to consumer) amongst fashion brands has helped them build a strong connect with the consumer leading to higher growth. The brand websites have reported 66 per cent order volume growth and 77 per cent GMV growth in FY-2021 as compared to the previous financial year,” the report states.

“The strong order volume growth supported with higher GMV growth has led to a 6 per cent increase in average order value. As compared to websites, marketplaces have reported 45 per cent order volume growth and 33 per cent GMV growth, with an 8 per cent decline in the average order value for FY-2021. This is testimony that fashion brands are investing aggressively to build a stronger DTC presence,” it adds.

Trend: Rising demand from Tier II, III cities

The trend of online shopping is gaining prominence in tier-II and -III cities, with 118per cent growth coming from Tier-II cities and over 192 per cent order volume growth from Tier-III cities, while Tier-I cities have reported a muted order volume growth of 14per cent.

Trend: Omnichannel Gaining Momentum