Flipkart Signs MoU with FISME, NCDPD

Flipkart announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with FISME (Federation of Indian Micro and Small and Medium Enterprises) and NCDPD (National Center for Design and Product Development) to boost manufacturing and entrepreneurship in the country.

Through this exclusive agreement, Flipkart will provide micro, small and medium entrepreneurs in India infrastructural support in data  analytics, marketing and customer acquisition to help them scale their business.

Ankit Nagori, VP–Marketplace, Flipkart, said, “We believe the marketplace model is best suited for an   emerging economy like India with a huge population. This model has seen traction in the past three years and we want to further use this platform to enable and encourage entrepreneurship in the country. We are excited to partner with FISME and NCDPD and create a powerful affiliation that will enable 50,000 SMEs and artisans to become self-reliant, improve their living standards and scale their business manifold.”

This is the first time that such a prominent trio of organisations have come together to create a platform that is solely focused on the betterment of Indian manufacturers and artisans. The partners believe this move will benefit a lot of businesses, including first-time entrepreneurs as well as a large number of women entrepreneurs

Commenting on the development, Anil Bharadwaj, Secretary General-FISME, said, “This kind of a tripartite coordinated effort has been planned and executed for the first time in this country.  We are delighted to be able to work closely with Flipkart to help MSME’s sell their products directly to buyers across the nation and this will create huge employment opportunities even in the ancillary industries and reduce the migration of rural population to the urban areas.”

With the help of strong data analytics that forms the base of e-marketplaces, it is easier for sellers to improve their products and services, thereby attracting more customers.

Flipkart, with its access to the largest customer base in the country, aims to help FISME and NCDPD make optimal use of the available data to guide entrepreneurs and artisans on areas such as deciding on the right selling price, payment automation, proper packaging, transportation and brand building.

“The analytics and market intelligence provided by Flipkart will assist NCDPD in improving our product R&D to help the artisans and master craftsmen create better saleable product ranges. This in turn will help them plan their production and expand their business - revolutionizing manufacturing in India, encouraging entrepreneurship and  growing  the rural economy”, said RK Srivastava, Executive Director – NCDPD.

The focus of this association will be to continue to help entrepreneurs create products in tune with buyer requirements and grow significantly so that they may become manufacturers not only at a local but also at a national level.