As per the survey by LocalCircles, in the last 12 months, 49 per cent Indian consumers opted for online sites and apps as the preferred mode of shopping. The survey received over 130,000 responses from over 42,000 consumers in 358 Indian districts

Around 18 per cent of the respondents preferred home deliveries while 31 per cent visited malls, local retailers and markets. Forty eight per cent of thembelonged to the Tier I cities while 31 per cent were from Tier II districts and 21 per cent were from Tier III, Tier IV and rural districts.

Safety from COVID-19 and convenience were cited as top reasons by these consumers for using ecommerce. Around 69 per cent of these bought groceries/essential supplies online. Besides large ecommerce platforms, consumers also used small verticals or local e-commerce sites to purchase groceries and essentials.

Consumers used services like Big Basket, Amazon Fresh/Pantry, Jio Mart, Flipkart, Grofers and a host of local ecommerce sites for essentials and groceries since March 20

Majority of consumers would prefer e-commerce sites and apps for their purchases in future as it offers benefits like free shipping and more effective and efficient returns and refunds process.

Womenswear brand Anavila launched its new Spring/ Summer 2021 collection ‘Bloom’ on March 17 with a dedicated pop-up shop at multi-brand Indian fashion retailer Amethyst in Royapettah, Chennai.

As per Fashion Network, the collection has a nature-inspired color palette of sky, earth, and forest tones and its loose, relaxed-fit garments feature subtle floral and bird motifs. It features the brand’s signature sarees alongside tunics and fusion wear garments made from semi-sheer textiles and designed for hot summer days. The exclusive pop-up will run at Amethyst until March 31 and prices begin at Rs 12,500 ($172.47).

Inspired by Clarissa Pinkola Estes’ book ‘Women Who Run with the Wolves, the collection is a message to women to go out and cherish the experiences that come their way.

Anavila Mishra launched her eponymous brand in 2012 and it has become known for its linen sarees. Anavila retails from its dedicated e-commerce store, flagship store in Mumbai, studio in Gurugram, and multi-brand retailers across India and online.

India’s draft e-commerce rules may raise costs and impede the expansion plans of companies like Amazon.com Inc and Walmart inc, opines Economic Times. These rules aim to prevent “digital monopolies” by prescribing a code of conduct for online retailers and defining cross-border flow of user data.

The new rules aim to reduce prevalent market distortions. The draft proposals seek to ensure algorithms created by e-retailers do not discriminate against sellers. They also call for associates of companies including Amazon and Walmart be governed by the same e-commerce regulations.

The draft e-commerce policy has been under discussion within various ministries and departments of the government for more than a year. The government wants to ensure that data emanating from India is for local entities first. Among the safeguards being considered are regulating cross-border flow of data of Indian users and audits.

The Armani Group plans to expand its Giorgio Armani, Emporio Armani and A|X Armani Exchange eyewear lines with a new collection.

The 2021 collection will include various sunglasses and optical glasses for men and women produced using sustainable materials and procedures. Around twenty different models made with eco-friendly and sustainable formulas will be presented over the years.

These models will be made from 100 per cent recycled materials stemming from an industrial waste recovery and subsequent regranulation process, to highly-valued bio-acetate composed of cellulose and plasticiser mainly deriving from renewable sources.

The glasses will be completed with lenses made from partially bio-based materials or pure crystal. The packaging, from the boxes to the cases, has also been revisited with the use of materials like recycled polyester and paper.

Tata CLiQ, the Tata Group backed e-commerce platform Tata CLiQ has roped in Karan Johar and Twinkle Khanna as brand ambassadors for an integrated media campaign.

As per Live Mint, the campaign has been conceptualized and conceived by Mullen Lintas Mumbai. It aims to introduce Tata CLiQ via large scale media platforms, including television, digital, and social media during the ongoing India versus England cricket series.

The multi-film campaign focuses on summer categories -air conditioners and refrigerators in home appliances and summer-season fashion. It aims to “CLiQ" with the target group the brand is targeting, through more aggressive marketing.

Launched in 2016 by Tata Unistore, Tata CLiQ started by selling apparel, electronics and footwear categories that include several of Tata’s owned brands such as Westside’s range of clothing, apart from electronics brands such as Voltas, Whirpool, LG. Fashion labels Only, Forever 21 and footwear brands Puma, Reebok, Aldo,

As per a survey by Local Circles, e-commerce is fast becoming one of the most preferred modes of shopping in India, buoyed by increased customer adoption over the past 12 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic/

Nearly half of all respondents said, ecommerce websites and apps have become their preferred mode of shopping over the last 12 months, while a further 18 per cent said they prefer getting goods delivered home from their local retailers.

Safety, competitive prices and ease of returns ranked as the top reasons for shoppers to trust in ecommerce services more than before, the survey which got 130,000 responses from over 42,000 unique consumers located in 358 districts of India showed.

Customers have started paying more for higher-quality items, while many others have turned to shopping from value brands rather than premium ones, the spokesperson added.

Among the most popular categories of products consumers shopped online were essentials and groceries with 69 per cent of the respondents buying these online. About 54 per cent shopped online for medium-value items such as clothing, furnishings and electronic accessories in the last 12 months, while 32 per cent purchased high-value items such as gadgets, white goods and furniture.

The survey found that 33 per cent of respondents purchased everything they needed through ecommerce, while a further 29 per cent said that over 75 per cent of their spending was on online platforms over the last one year.

As per the 13th edition of the Retail Business Survey by the Retailers Association of India, the retail industry achieved 93 per cent of the pre-COVID sales in February.

Segments such as consumer durables and quick service restaurants (QSR) reported 15 per cent and 18 per cent growth respectively in February 2021, says the survey report.

Categories like footwear, beauty, wellness and personal care, sports goods and food and grocery are showing steady month-on-month recovery.

Recovery across regions is showing steady improvement, with eastern India indicating positive growth of 2 per cent in the month of February.

Kumar Rajagopalan, CEO, RAI said the retailers are hopeful of achieving pre-pandemic levels of business in the first six months of 2021.

After the pandemic, it has now become imperative for every retailer to adopt 'phygital' in various ways -- be it social media, messaging platforms, or digital shopping, in addition to their normal channels to align themselves with the changing consumer mindsets of the next normal, he noted.

Although COVID-19 vaccinations have started, the pandemic situation may take some more time to completely settle. RAI believes that recovery will need unconventional solutions and government support, the report said.

Indian traders have ruled out chances of any immediate cotton exports to Pakistan as the country has already imported cotton from Brazil and African countries.

As per a SRTEPC report, Pakistan produces 50 lakh bales every year and was a major importer of Indian cotton before the start of the border skirmishes. However, since the last two years, it has stopped all imports from India.

Though the ceasefire declared earlier this month has reignited hopes of normal trade ties being resumed, Pakistan spinners are against any imports from India.

As per a Parbhani-based cotton trader said, Indian imports will result in a price crash, which they want to avoid.

Also, farmers in Pakistan plan to harvest new crop after June and imports might affect prices later.

By the end of January, India had exported 29 lakh bales of cotton.

Prices of kapas (raw unginned cotton) have been bullish in the wholesale markets, which has seen the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) withdrawing from the market.

India’s draft e-commerce policy mandates its e-commerce firms to treat sellers equally on their platforms and ensure transparency, says a report by the Economic Times.

A Reuters special report last month revealed that for years, Amazon has been favoring a small group of sellers on its India platform and using them to circumvent the country's foreign investment rules.

The new policy will apply to Amazon and Flipkart as well as domestic players like Reliance Industries, which has plans to expand its JioMart online platform. Separately, India also plans to change its foreign investment rules that could prompt players including Amazon to restructure their ties with some major sellers.

Indian traders have also complained about steep discounts offered by online companies which smaller retailers have not been able to match.

The Reuters special report last month - based on internal Amazon documents dated between 2012 and 2019 - showed the company helped a small number of sellers prosper on its India platform, giving them discounted fees and helping one cut special deals with big tech manufacturers.