Amazon and Flipkart have increased select seller fees ahead of India’s festive shopping season, adding to the cost pressures faced by merchants on the two major e-commerce platforms.
The changes come at a crucial time for online retailers, with the festive period typically accounting for a significant share of annual e-commerce sales. Amazon and Flipkart are expected to compete aggressively on pricing, discounts, delivery and product selection as shoppers move online for major purchases.
According to the report, the platforms have revised fees in several categories, affecting the overall cost of selling on their marketplaces.
Seller fees can include components such as referral fees, shipping and fulfilment charges and other marketplace-related costs. The impact of the revisions varies depending on the product category, selling price and fulfilment model used by individual sellers.
The timing therefore puts sellers in a balancing act, higher festive demand can drive volumes, but increased platform fees can put pressure on margins.
The Indian e-commerce market has also become more competitive with the rapid growth of quick commerce, which has expanded from groceries into categories such as electronics, beauty, fashion and other consumer products.
For Amazon and Flipkart, the festive season remains an important opportunity to capture high-value purchases and defend their positions across categories. The fee revisions are consequently likely to remain an important consideration for sellers as they prepare their inventory, pricing and promotional strategies for the festive sales period.
With the festive shopping cycle approaching, the larger question for sellers will be whether higher volumes can offset the increased costs of selling through India’s largest e-commerce marketplaces.
