Flipkart To Launch Its Logistics Services To Third Party Firms....
Flipkart Ltd, the country’s largest online retailer, has thrown open its logistics services eKart to third-party e-commerce firms even as the company is gearing up to roll out an inter-city customer-to-customer courier service called eFlash in the next two months, said three people aware of the development.
The e-commerce logistics service has already found takers such as online fashion store Jabong and online marketplace Shopclues (Clues Network Pvt. Ltd); technical integration with Jabong is underway, while Shopclues will come on board in the next two weeks. eFlash is still in beta stage, currently available only to Flipkart employees in Bangalore, the people cited above said.
Myntra, which was acquired by Flipkart for $330 million in May 2014, has already been using eKart’s logistics services since September last year. The company expects other e-commerce firms to adopt the services in a big way starting February.
The company is also recently injected Rs 666 crore (nearly $100 million) into Ekart, regulatory filings show. "Fundamentally, everyone has realised that they have to monetise all pieces of the business,"said a venture capital investor familiar with Flipkart's plans.
The move (to hive off Ekart) is also... to cut down cash burn and raise capital in a more stable
business, which could be attractive to a different set of investors." A Flipkart spokesman said:"There
is no discussion on the table to either independently value or get external funding for Ekart".
