Flipkart to go app-only

Online retailer Flipkart has decided to become an app-only player. The company’s chief product officer Punit Soni informed employees at a town hall meeting last week that Flipkart will operate with only a mobile app from September.

Flipkart’s will now help consumers to make purchases through the mobile app thanks to exponential growth of smartphones and mobile internet. The app also allows e-tailers to create personalized shopping experiences for consumers by understanding their location, preferences and purchase patterns.

Flipkart has 45 million registered users clocking over 10 million daily visits, and expects to more than double the gross merchandise value (GMV) of the products it sells on its platform to $8 billion this year. The company raised $2 billion in 2014-15, and it was valued at $11 billion in its last round of funding.

Myntra, which Flipkart acquired, is said to have seen a 10% decline in sales in the immediate aftermath of its going app-only. But it was confident of making that up in the following weeks. Myntra had said that prior to abandoning its website, 90% of traffic and 70% of sales came from the mobile platform.