Hyperlocal & Social Commerce: New buzzwords in Apparel Sector Post COVID-19

The big learning which is coming from the Covid-19 pandemic is that social selling is picking up pace. Also, Instagram shopping is leading the way. Going ahead, digital commerce is going to become big...

- Charu Lamba

With majorIndian cities, including the capital city–Delhi–and the financial capital–Mumbai– being designated coronavirus “red zones” by the Government of India, depending on the level of infection, the impact of COVID 19 on retailers is far from easing out. Though the retail stores were shut in a single, they are definitely not start in one day. Fashion retailers are anticipant a structured roll-out, but see less hope of business opening in the May mid-month.

Vineet Gautam, CEO, Bestseller, India, talked about the response of his brand to COVID-19, said, “COVID-19 has put to challenging times and all retailers are reacting differently. At present, Bestseller is concentrating on making new business plans – how to look at stores, how to look at hygiene, how consumer requirements will change and how technology will change.”

“In the near future, when we have customers in our stores, we cannot afford to not stock the right products. Similarly, none of us can afford to have too much inventory lying in one place, blocking cash and in another place have nothing,” he further said. Gautam was answering questions posed to him in a webinar.

“Considering the pandemic situation, capital has become a key part for all business. As cash is a big constraint amid Covid-19, we have to be conscious and ensure that cash is used and deployed well. We must also use the right technology, algorithms, and logic to figure out the most relevant product in each market today – this can be key to every brand’s success,” Gautam said.