Flipkart leads Q3 international net sales for Walmart

Flipkart drove international net sales for parent Walmart during the three months ended in October 2021. “Strong growth in net sales at Flipkart was helped by a record number of monthly active customers,” the US-based retailer said on Tuesday.

Net sales for the segment increased by a marginal 1.3% year-on-year to $29.6 billion in the August-October period. Excluding currency, net sales would have grown by 5% year-on-year to $30.6 billion led by Flipkart, Canada and Walmex, the company said while announcing the Q3FY21 results. Walmart’s calendar runs from February-January.

During the quarter, Flipkart held its annual festive sale. The customers in India typically make 80% of the online purchases during the first leg of the festive sale events that are scheduled closer to Navratri. Flipkart claimed to have recorded over 666 million visits during the six-day Big Billion Days (BBD) that ended on October 21. As much as 52% of the visits were registered from tier three cities and beyond. The firm said it witnessed 110 order placements per second. Flipkart extended its reach to cities like Jhumri Telaiya, Chamba, Cumbum and Thottiyam.

Speaking at the earnings call, Walmart executives said the Q3 GMV (gross merchandise value) for Flipkart continued to “reflect strong demand”. The company saw its best-ever BBD, they said.

While the festive season usually drives the bulk of the annual sales for e-commerce firms, this year the demand grew manifold as the pandemic nudged more customers to take to online shopping. Analysts also attribute the sectoral growth to the increasing ease with which consumers are now able to navigate online apps. Companies like Flipkart and Amazon have added vernacular languages to accommodate more users.

“This year TBBD witnessed more than 55% increase in digital payments transactions on Flipkart with a sharp increase in the New to the digital customer base,” the company had said earlier.

Last month, Amazon said it had a very strong Prime Day in India and Diwali was off to a “good start”.

Analysts at consulting firm RedSeer estimate e-commerce companies to have made $4.1 billion in gross sales during the October 15-21 period, up 55% over the previous year. Flipkart led, capturing 68% of GMV, they said.