This document provides a summary of a study on the company profile of Indiatimes Shopping in India. It includes a declaration by the author confirming the work is original, a certificate from the supervisor, and acknowledgements. The introduction provides background on the growth of e-commerce in India. It discusses factors like changing lifestyles, increased internet access, and device usage driving online shopping growth. Chapter 2 discusses the Indian e-commerce industry and segments like B2C, C2C, B2B. Chapter 3 will provide details on Indiatimes Shopping's profile, including operations, payment policies, and SWOT analysis. Chapter 4 will discuss findings and suggestions.

1. A Study on Company Profile of India Times Shopping
A Project Report Submitted
In the Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements
For the Degree of
Bachelor of Business Administration
By
Harsh saraf
Registration no- Y151805132
BBA- 2nd Semester
Under the Guidance of:
Dr. Ashish Gupta
(Assistant Professor)
Department of Business Management
Dr. Hari Singh Gour Central University
Sagar (M.P.) India
Year 2016

2. DECLARATION
I hereby declare that the project conducted on “Company Profile of Indiatimes shopping”
(India)under the guidance of Mr. Ashish Gupta, Assistant Professor, Department of Business
Management Dr. Hari Singh Gour Central University, Sagar (M.P.) is my own work and the
same has not been submitted for the award of any other Degree/Diploma/fellowship or other
similar titles or prizes.
Date
Place: Sagar

3. CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that Harsh saraf has worked for her BBA project entitled “Company Profile
of Indiatimes shopping” India in partial fulfillment of the degree of Bachelor of Business
Administration. He has completed his project under my supervision. His work is original,
satisfactory and is not submitted anywhere else other award of any degree. I hereby forward his
Project and wish him success in future endeavor.
Guide Signature:
Name:

4. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
It is a great opportunity for me to express my sincere thanks to Prof. Y. S. Thakur, Head,
Department of Business Management, Dr. Hari Singh Gour Central University Sagar (MP). I
would like to pay my special gratitude to Dr. Ashish Gupta, who supervised my work, for his
valuable guidance and constant encouragement throughout my project work. I am very thankful
to the all respected faculty members of the department, who supported me in the preparation of
my project. Finally, I would like to thank my parents, my friends without whom the completion
of the project would not have been possible.
Harsh saraf
BBA (hons)
2ND Sem
(Y151805132)

5. TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. PREFACE....
2. ACKNOWLEGDMENT....
3. DECLARATION….
4. CERTIFICATE OF SUPERVISION...
CHAPTER -1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the problem
1.2 Motivation for the study
1.3 Scope of the study
1.4 Limitation of study
1.5 Organization of the report
CHAPTER- 2
E-COMMERCE INDUSTRY IN INDIA
2.1 E-Commerce in India
2.2 Major players in India
2.3 E-Commerce logistic: Facing challenges
2.4 Overview of e-Commerce retail logistic
2.5 E-commerce industry work on some major problem
2.6 Role of logistic e-Commerce retail
2.7 Why customer prefer e-Commerce?

6. 2.8 Delivery service on e-Commerce e-Tail
2.9 Scope of E-Commerce industry in India
2.10 Online Reail/ e-Tai
2.11 Technology in e-Commerce
CHAPTER – 3
COMPANY PROFILE
3.1 About Us: CorporateOverview
3.1.1 About India Time Shopping
3.2 Payment Information
3.3 Refund Policy
3.4 What is India Times Return Policy?
3.5 SWOT Anlysis
3.6 STP Model
CHAPTER- 4
FINDINGS & SUGGESTION
4.1 Findings
4.2 Suggestion
REFRENCES…….

7. Chapter-1
Introduction
1.1Background the Problem
Over the last decade, the Internet has changed the way people buy and sell goods and services.
Online retail or e-commerce is transforming the shopping experience of customers. The sector
has seen unprecedented growth especially in the last two years. The adoption of technology is
enabling the e-commerce sector to be more reachable and efficient. Devices like smartphones,
tablets and technologies like 3G, 4G, Wi-Fi and high speed broadband is helping to increase the
number of online customers. Banks and other players in e-commerce ecosystem are providing a
secured online platform to pay effortlessly via payments gateways. The homegrown players have
shown tremendous growth and attracted some big investors. The entry of global biggies like
Amazon and Alibaba has taken the competition to a new level. E-tailers are differentiating
themselves by providing innovative service offerings like one-day delivery, 30-day replacement
warranty, cash on delivery (CoD), cashback offers, mobile wallets, etc. The supply chain has
improved significantly and e-tailers are even leveraging on the services of Indian Post for greater
reach across the country. In 2014, Indian Post collected ` 2.8 billion through CoD option of
payment. 1 India slipped from 14th to 20th rank among the top 30 developing countries in 2014
Global Retail Development Index (GRDI) that looks at measures for retail investments
worldwide. 2 Chile and China are leading in the GRDI rankings. The sector is still in its growth
stage in India and has enormous potential to offer in the coming years. The government’s most
prestigious Digital India project could take the sector to new heights (Deloitte, 2014).
The eCommerce sector has seen unprecedented growth in 2014. The growth was
driven by rapid technology adoption led by the increasing use of devices such as smartphones
and tablets, and access to the internet through broadband, 3G, etc, which led to an increased

8. online consumer base. Furthermore, favoured demographics and a growing internet user base
helped aid this growth. In terms of highlights, the growth shown by homegrown players such as
Flipkart and Snapdeal and the huge investor interest around these companies displayed the
immense potential of the market. With the entry of eCommerce behemoths such as Amazon and
Alibaba, the competition is expected to further intensify. Both these international players come
with deep pockets and the patience to drive the Indian eCommerce market. Also, their strong
domain knowledge and best practices from their international experience give them an additional
edge. Additionally, these companies have been part of markets where they have seen the
eCommerce market evolve and are aware of the challenges and strategies to address issues
thereof. Indian companies realise this, and are therefore aiming to continue their focus on
expanding sellers and selection on their platforms, innovating on multiple customer touch points,
and providing seamless and rapid delivery services in order to compete with the international
entities. Competition is expected to continue, with these eCommerce companies experimenting
with different ways to attract customers and increase online traffic.
The Indian government’s ambitious Digital India project and the modernisation of India
Post will also affect the eCommerce sector. The Digital India project aims to offer a one-stop
shop for government services that will have the mobile phone as the backbone of its delivery
mechanism. The programme will give a strong boost to the eCommerce market as bringing the
internet and broadband to remote corners of the country will give rise to an increase in trade and
efficient warehousing and will also present a potentially huge market for goods to be sold. For
India Post, the government is keen to develop its distribution channel and other eCommerce
related services as a major revenue model going ahead, especially when India Post transacted
business worth 280 crore INR in the cash-on-delivery (CoD) segment for firms such as Flipkart,
Snapdeal and Amazon. Both these projects will have significant impact on increasing the reach
of eCommerce players to generally non-serviceable areas, thereby boosting growth. India’s
overall retail opportunity is substantial, and coupled with a demographic dividend (young
population, rising standards of living and upwardly mobile middle class) and rising internet
penetration, strong growth in eCommerce is expected.
From an investment perspective, the market is a primarily minority stake market,
with maximum traction in early-stage deals. Such early stage funding will help companies
develop a strong foundation to start from. With such strong market prospects and an equally

9. upbeat investor community, we look forward to many more eCommerce companies from India
entering the coveted billion-dollar club (PWC 2014). In 2013, Asia-Pacific emerged as the
strongest business-toconsumer (B2C) eCommerce region in the world with sales of around 567.3
billion USD, a growth of 45% over 2012, ranking ahead of Europe (482.3 billion USD) and
North America (452.4 billion USD). The top three were followed by Latin America, and the
Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, according to Ecommerce Europe1. Globally,
B2C eCommerce sales increased by 24% over 2012. This reflects the huge untapped potential of
eCommerce by retail companies, both in their country of origin and across borders. eCommerce
or electronic commerce, deals with the buying and selling of goods and services, or the
transmitting of funds or data, over an electronic platform, mainly the internet. These business
transactions are categorised into either business-to-business (B2B), business-to-consumer (B2C),
consumer-to-consumer (C2C), consumer-to-business (C2B) or the recently evolved business-to-
business-to-consumer (B2B2C). eCommerce processes are conducted using applications, such as
email, fax, online catalogues and shopping carts, electronic data interchange (EDI), file transfer
protocol and web services and e-newsletters to subscribers. eTravel is the most popular form of
eCommerce, followed by eTail which essentially means selling of retail goods on the internet
conducted by the B2C category (PWC,2014).
Figure: Top 10 Countries in terms of population and e-households
Source: (Coopers, 2014)
The e-commerce market in India was estimated at USD17.6 billion in 2014, and is expected to
grow at a CAGR of 40 per cent to touch USD136 billion by 2020. The online travel segment at

10. USD12 billion alone, comprises about 68 per cent of the e-commerce industry in India, including
travel and e-ticketing websites. Ticketing accounts for the largest share of the online travel
market, with domestic air ticketing driving growth. At USD3 billion, e-commerce retailing is the
second largest and fastest growing segment. This is followed by the financial services and
classified segments, job searches and online matrimony which contribute to about 15 per cent of
the market by value. The e-commerce retail market is among India’s exciting and fastest growing
markets. It is poised to be worth USD36.7 billion by 2020, from USD3 billion in 2014, growing
at a CAGR of approximately 52 per cent. This industry has come a long way sinceits inception
and is continuously gaining momentum and value. The Indian market is driven by factors such as
increased penetration of internet and smartphones, focus on advertising, ease of shopping for
customers, innovative payment options, deals and discounts and the rapidly changing lifestyle
needs.
1.1.1 Changing lifestyle of the Indian consumer seeking convenience, comfort and variety:
Online shopping in metro cities is often associated with ease and convenience, saving time and a
hassle-free options. Besides, products are delivered to customers either on the same or the
following day of placing an order. For medium to small towns, online shopping stores provide a
wide range of domestic and international brands, which may not otherwise be easily accessible.
Also, e-commerce retailing sites offer better deals and discounts round the year, which may not
be the case with retail store shopping.
1.1.2 Increase in internet-enabled devices: The rapid growth in affordable electronic devices
toaccess the internet, including personal computers/laptops, mobile phones (particularly
smartphones), internet television and tablets are driving growth for e-commerce retailing in the
country. Mobile phones (including smartphones) internet users are likely to grow 2.5 times by
2019, thereby enabling a corresponding growth trend for the online shopping industry in India.
More than 50 per cent of the orders for e-commerce retail giants are generated via mobile apps.
In terms of traffic, bigger e-commerce retail companies draw as high as 50 to 70 per cent of their
total traffic through mobile. In the coming years, potentially 40 million shoppers in the age group
of 19 to 24 years are expected to spend time and money online. This trend is rapidly aligning
with e-commerce retailing, to facilitate the sector’s growth.
Sources-(PWC, 2014), (KPMG, 2015)

11. 1.1.3 Types of E-Commerce
Waghmare G.T. (2012) has defined the following types of e-commerce:
 B2B E-Commerce: Companies doing business with each other such as manufacturers
selling to distributors and wholesalers selling to retailers. Pricing is based on quantity of
order and is often negotiable.
 B2C E-Commerce: Businesses selling to the general public typically through cataloes
utilizing shopping cart software. By dollar volume, B2B takes the prize, however B2C is
really what the average Joe has in mind with regards to ecommerce as a whole. for example
indiatimes.com.
 C2C E-Commerce: There are many sites offering free classifieds, auctions, and forums
where individuals can buy and sell thanks to online payment systems like PayPal where
people can send and receive money online with ease. eBay's auction service is a great
example of where customer-to customer transactions take place every day.
 Others: G2G (Government-to-Government), G2E (Government-to-Employee), G2B
(Government-to-Business), B2G (Business-to-Government).
Figure: Types of e-Commerce
e-
COMMERCE
B2B- BUSINESS
TO BUSSINES
B2C- BUSINESS
TO CONSUMER
C2C-
CONSUMER TO
CONSUMER
G2G-
GOVERNMENT
TO
GOVERNMENT

12. 1.2 Motivation for the Study
Emerging trend of e-Commerce in India as well as all over world created an urge inside me to
study and to do a deep analysis of this type of commerce in India. This study has attempted to
know the current state of the e-Commerce in India, and also to study the future of e-Commerce.
Another motivation of studying this topic is to understand the properly about company profile
and data which is collected from the Company’s website and other data collected by other
sources, which are mentioned below , and from the articles from collected from the search
engine like Google.com etc.
1.3 Scope of the Study
 The scope of this research is to identify the service quality of company.
 This research is based on e-Commerce market.
 This study only focuses on the dimensions of service.
 The study was done taking various secondary data consideration.
 The study was restricted to the Indiatimes shopping India only.
 To examine the growth of e-commerce in both physical and financial terms.
 To evaluate the benefits obtained from e-business.
1.4 Limitation of the Study
 The Study is only for the Indiatimes shopping Only Confined only a small segment of all
rediff.com.
 In our study we have included a Indiatimes shopping only because of time limit and It
was very difficult to find the more efficient information about the company.
 This was one of the most important limitations faced, as it was difficult to analyze and
come at a right conclusion.

13. 1.5 Organization of the Report
Chapter -1
In the Introduction section of the study. I determine many sub topics of study such as
background of study, also background is consist some major points and these are changing
lifestyle of the Indian consumer seeking convenience, comfort and variety, Increase in internet-
enabled devices and other points are motivation of the study, scopes of the study, limitation of
the study.
Chapter–2
In the industry profile section, I have given details on its whole Indian E-commerce, E-business,
E-retailing and other factors of E-commerce is emerged in India and all over world. This chapter
consist commerce Industry in India, Business-to-Consumer (B2C), Consumer-to-Consumer
(C2C), business-to-Business (B2B), E-commerce logistics: Facing challenges, E-commerce
industry worked on some major problems, Role of logistics in e-commerce retail, Why customer
find E-commerce, Delivery services in e-commerce retail: Express and holiday deliveries, Online
retail/ e-Tailing.
Chapter–3
In this chapter we are study profile section of the E-commerce site or my project topic
Indiatimes shopping , I have given the details about its headquarters, background, Major
Competitors of Indiatimes shopping in India. Company Profile of Indiatimes shopping, and
Board of Directors, there exchange policy, refund policy, payment information, there terms and
condition.
Chapter – 4
In this section Finding and suggestion are being given which are very necessary for e-Commerce
industry in India.

14. Chapter-2
E-Commerce Industry in India
2.1 e-Commerce in India
Since the eCommerce industry is fast rising, changes can be seen over a year. The sector in India
has grown by 34% (CAGR) since 2009 to touch 16.4 billion USD in 20142. The sector is
expected to be in the range of 22 billion USD in 2015. Currently, eTravel comprises 70% of the
total eCommerce market. eTailing, which comprises of online retail and online marketplaces, has
become the fastest-growing segment in the larger market having grown at a CAGR of around
56% over 2009-2014. The size of the eTail market is pegged at 6 billion USD in 2015. Books,
apparel and accessories and electronics are the largest selling products through eTailing,
constituting around 80% of product distribution. The increasing use of smartphones, tablets and
internet broadband and 3G has led to developing a strong consumer base likely to increase
further. This, combined with a larger number of homegrown eTail companies with their
innovative business models has led to a robust eTail market in India rearing to expand at high
speed.
A significantly low (19%) but fast-growing internet population of 243 million in 2014 is
an indicator of the sector’s huge growth potential in India. It is evident that in absolute terms
India’s internet users are short by only 36 million as compared with 279 million in the US and
higher than that in Japan, Brazil and Russia. However, in relation with its population, only 19%
Indians use the internet. This indicates the potential of internet use in India and as internet
penetration increases, the potential of growth for the eCommerce industry will also increase. An
analysis of the demographic profile of internet users further testifies that eCommerce will rise
rapidly in India in coming years. Around 75% of Indian internet users are in the age group of 15
to 34 years. This category shops more than the remaining population. Peer pressure, rising
aspirations with career growth, fashion and trends encourage this segment to shop more than any
other category and India, therefore, clearly enjoys a demographic dividend that favours the
growth of eCommerce. In coming years, as internet presence increases in rural areas, rural India
will yield more eCommerce business.(PWC,2014)

15. Figure: India’s e-Commerce and e-Tail growth
Sources: (PWC,2014)
2.1.1 Top Motivators for Shopping Online
Times of India (February 12, 2013) has published that top motivators for shopping online
which include cash back guarantee, cash on delivery, fast delivery, substantial discounts
compared to retail, and access to branded products, while barriers include inability to touch
and try products before purchase, fear of faulty products, apprehension of posting personal
and financial details online and inability to bargain.
Figure: Top Five Motivators
Sources: (Gangeshwer, 2013)

16. 2.2 Major e-Commerce player in India
 Flipkart:
Flipkart is a leading e-commerce company and grab the first position after acquire
myntra in a deal of $3.1 billion. Flipkart was started by Sachin Bansal and Binny
Bansal in 2007 and within 5 years company has become the leading e-commerce
player of Indian market. Flipkart started with online booking stores and later on it has
added gadgets, electron items and apparels. In these 5 years Flipkart is able to build
bond of trust among buyers and because of this Flipkart has achieve stunning growth.
Establishment- 2007
Website- www.flipkart.com
 Fashionandyou:
Second place is grab by Fashionandyou.Fashionandyou was started in 2009 by
Harish Bahl with a motto to cater eminent designer’s collections under one roof. Over
the years it become a prominent brand in fashion &apparel industry and numerous top
notch merchandise are associated with it.
Establishment-2009
Website: www.fashionandyou.com
 Snapdeal:
Snapdeal is placed at third position in the list of top 10 e-commerce companies in
India. Snapdeal was started by alumnus of IIT Delhi in 2010 and within 3 years
capture huge share of Indian e-commerce industry. Snapdeal has numerous product
categories that include books, mobiles, electronic items, apparels etc. Initially it was
started as discount coupon website but to capture growing ecommerce market
Snapdeal has change their business model.
Establishment – 2010
Website: www.snapdeal.com

17.  Myntra:
Fouth place is acquired by Myntra. Myntra was established by IIT graduates in 2007
and has headquartered in Bangalore. Company works in niche market space of
apparels and has tie up with prominent brands.
Establishment – 2007
Website – myntra.com
 Dealsandyou:
Dealsandyou is placed at fifth placed. Dealsandyou is a deals website that brings
discounted deals of numerous day to day products. Deals help consumers to get
discount and also increase the sales of the sellers.
Website: www.dealsandyou.com
 HomeShop18:
HomeShop18 is an online venture of Network 18 Group. It is an ecommerce website
that sells Mobiles, clothing, footwear, jewellery, beauty, books and toys. Numerous
top brands like Samsung, Nokia, Canon, Nikon, Sony are associate with
HomeShop18.
HomeShop18 provides the facility to track the order and regularly send product
dispatch status on mobile and inbox. Online payment option through credit/debit
cards also available on website. To build healthy relationship with corporate,
HomeShop18 offers heavy discount on corporate gifting & bulk deals.
Establishment – 2008
Website: www.homeshop18.com
 Yebhi.com:
Yebhi.com is another well-known ecommerce company started in 2009 and within 4
years become the establish player in ecommerce industry. Yebhi was started as
BigShoeBazaar.com and then changed its identity to Yebhi. After seen the potential
in this company Nexus Venture Partners and N. R. Narayana Murthy’s Catamaran
Ventures invested 40 crore in this company.
Establishment – 2010
Website: www.yebhi.com

18.  Caratlane:
Caratlane is a leading jewellery website in India that has product range from
Diamond Jewellery, Rings, Earrings, Pendants, Bangles, Necklaces, Nose Pins,
Mangalsutra etc. Caratlane offers 5 payment options that include
Website: www.caratlane.com
 ShopClues:
ShopClues is another growing ecommerce company which act as a marketplace
between seller and buyer. ShopClues provide delivery in more than 12,000 locations
and offers payment options like Net Banking, Credit cards, Debit cards, and Cash
Cards. In 2013 ShopClues awarded Best eRetailer of the Year by Indian eRetail
Awards 2013
Website - www.shopclues.com
 Jabong:
Founded in the year 2012 at Gurgaon, Jabong is leading fashion portal of India. They
offer more than 90,000 products, 200000+ Styles and over 2000 national and
international brands of fashion clothing, shoes, accessories and home-decor. They are
very popular among young internet users who are looking for branded clothes and
other fashion products at discounted prices. They also have an international store in
the name of “Jabongworld.com”.
Website: http://www.jabong.com/
 E-bay India
eBay India is a 100% subsidiary of international top online e-commerce company -
eBay Inc. Started operations in 2014, They are among the biggest managed online e-
commerce players in the market with more than 2.1 million active users from 4000+
cities in India. They have more than 1.1 million live product listings on their portal
across widest 2,000 categories of products. There are around 30,000 merchants sell
their products annually on their website. It is said that a cosmetic product sells every
1 minute, a TV sells in every 27 minutes, a car accessory sells every 1 minute on their
portal. Website: http://www.ebay.in/

19.  Naaptol:
Established in the year 2007, Naaptol started as price comparision website. In 2009,
they started their online marketplace and pitched their products to customers online,
offline, newspaper advertisings and via TV shopping. Their site has 90,000 visitors
visiting them and conducting 5000 transactions a day, which generate daily sales of
Rs.1.5 crores. Headquartered in Mumbai, they deliver to all states and UT in India.
Infact, it was first e-commerce company that uses the services of “India Post” for
their product deliveries. suit.
Website: http://www.naaptol.com/
 Infibeam
Started in the year 2007, Infibeam is a leading online retailer for electronics, books,
automobiles, lifestyle and gifts in India. They started as automobile portal and later
turned into online shopping retailers. Their website has widest range of 1.2 Crore
products across categories. They also have their own logistics arm known as Infibeam
Logistics, which delivers to all major Indian cities. Headquartered in Ahmedabad,
they have offices in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore employing around 1300 strong
professionals.
Website: http://www.infibeam.com/
 Limeroad:
LimeRoad is India's leading online shopping platform for fashion and lifestyle
products exclusively for women shoppers. They have around 200,000+ products on
sale and have wide range of local vendor network with selling of local fashion
products ranging from Kurtis, Sarees, Salwar Suits, footware, accessories, women
handbags & purses, kitchen products etc. The site is popular among working women
shoppers and their best selling products are kurtis which are meant for official wear.
Website: http://www.limeroad.com/
 Amazon India:
The US based e-commerce giant Amazon has launched its India operations in the
year 2013. They started in India with limited number of products and slowly they
have captured the market with their amazing offers on their extensive catalogues.

20. They have merchant-amazon setup of business model, where in merchants will sell
their products on their site with a nominal fee charges by the company. Amazon will
provide delivery logistics to these sellers. They have grown really fast in India and
today they have more than 25 million products for sale on their website which is
larger than their major rivalry Flipkart.
Website: http://www.amazon.in/
 Yepme:
Yepme is counted among top notch e-Commerce companies of India. It was started in
2011 by Sandeep Sharma, Anand Jadav and Vivek Gaur, alumni of IIT. Company has
head office in Gurgaon and has women and men apparels and shoes. User can buy
products online from website using credit/debit card. Company works across Tier1
and Tier 2 cities and has good delivery network. To expend business company has
received raised Series A investment from Helion Ventures Partners.
Website- www.yepme.com
 Koovs.com:
Koovs.com is a famous shopping website from where users can buy online clothing,
beauty whims, shoes, lingerie, bags etc. From company online website user can order
fashion products online from company website and can track the status of the order
under Track Order tab. Company also provides Cash on delivery facility under which
user can order online and pay once they receive the product.
Website- www.koovs.com
 ShoppersStop:
ShoppersStop is another prominent retail outlet chain that started selling products
online. Company has hundreds of stores in PAN India and all are located in
prominent locations. All the well known brands has been selling products on website
and store that includes brands like Calvin Klein, Barbie, Being Human, Levis,
L’Oreal, Ray Ban, Celio etc. From online website you can order, track your order,
can exchange the products that you have bought online.
Website- www.shoppersstop.com

21. 2.3 E-commerce logistics: Facing challenges
The major problem that’s facing the E-commerce industry nowadays those problems are
discussed below.
2.3.1 Procurement/inventory management
• Absence of a defined process for vendor selection/quality checks
• Price variances across multiple on-boarded vendors for the same product
• Ineffective inventory planning/monitoring of open purchase orders
• Challenges associated with warehousing/monitoring of stock levels.
2.3.2 Customer order management
• Multiple tax rates across geographies - compliance of sale invoices to tax laws
• Monitoring delivery related service level agreements/pending orders
• Products sold at higher than maximum retail price/negative margins
• Promotion codes used after expiry/beyond the defined criteria.
2.3.3 Logistics and shipping
• Non-compliance with agreements - cash collection/reconciliation/on-time delivery
• Selection of a cost effective and efficient third party logistics vendor for select pin codes
• Challenges associated with route planning/consolidation of shipments
• Vendor payments based on shipment.
2.3.4 Returns, replacement and refunds
• Incorrect/delays in processing of customer refunds (online and COD)
• Replacements/refunds processed to customers without a receipt of goods/adequate quality

22. checks
• Absence of a robust process to monitor compensation provided to customers
• Non-monitoring of customers with significant number of returns.
2.3.5 Customer support
• Categorization of customer complaints and response mechanisms
• Customer dispute resolution
• Monitoring delivery-related service level agreements (customer and seller management)
• Review and monitoring of access controls (order cancellations, refunds, etc.).
2.3.6 Reconciliations
• Goods reconciliations: order quantity v/s shipped quantity vs. delivered quantity
• Amount received from payment gateway vs value of prepaid orders vs payment gateway
charges
• Purchase order vs invoice vs physical goods
• Logistic vendor invoice vs quantity, weight and area code of deliveries assigned. (KPMG,
2015)

23. 2.4 Overview of e-commerce retail logistics
Products bought online undergo a range of processes before they finally reach the end customers.
These processes have been outlined below:
 First mile logistics:
This involves picking up of goods from the sellers and transporting it to the e-commerce
retailers fulfilment centre or directly to the mother warehouse, depending on the type of
fulfilment model i.e. inventory-led or marketplace.
 Inventory-led model:
In the inventory-led model, products are sent to the fulfilment centre without
packaging/labeling whereas in the marketplace model, products are completely
packed and sent to the warehouse for storage.1 After the stock arrives at the fulfilment
centre, a physical check is carried out against the Advance ship notice (ASN)/transport
challan, followed by a quality check, before the product is put away on the racks. The
inventory is updated in the Warehouse Management System (WMS) and a stock report is
generated.
 Market place model:
In the marketplace model, products are checked against the arrival list sent from the
seller and stored in the mother warehouse, before the products are sent for the last mile
delivery.
 Fulfillment:
Post first mile logistics, its fulfillment, which involves picking and packaging of
products once an order is placed on the website. After the order is placed, a pick list is
generated and the product is picked and accordingly updated into the system. Then, the
products are packed, labeled and moved to the mother warehouse, from where they are
sent for last mile delivery.

24.  Processing/sorting:
After fulfilment, the products are sorted based on the delivery location at the processing
centre of 3PLs and are connected further in the supply chain through linehaul depending
upon the final delivery location.
 Line-haul:
This stage involves connecting the main supply centre with the main demand centre, via
land or air depending on the transit time and cost matrix. Airline haul is three to four
times costlier than surface line-haul, however it has a lower transit time1. Recently 3PLs
started off surface express movements for dedicated movement between two points, with
shorter transit times than the normal surface line-haul movement. Long distance line haul
(more than 500 km) comprised 100 per cent by air earlier, the share of surface line haul in
the long distance line haul has been increasing. Short distance line haul (less than 500
km) are predominantly done by surface with airline haul forming around five to10 per
cent of the short distance line haul.
 Last mile logistics:
This phase involves the dispatch and shipping of products from the mother hubs and to
the delivery hubs, from where they are shipped out to the customers. This leg of the entire
logistics chain is dependent on manpower and infrastructure in terms of the number of
delivery hubs, delivery vans and bikes. Most of the 3PLs face difficulty in maintaining
their manpower due to high attrition rate and therefore, face challenges in reliable
deliveries.
 Returns:
Another important aspect of e-commerce retail is higher returns, which can be customer
initiated or due to a logistics failure. The returned goods are cycled back into the
inventory, restocked and relisted. These can however lead to complications like refund,
exchange and replacement, which increases the overall cost of the supply chain. E-
commerce retailers are introducing innovative mechanisms to reduce returns such as size-
recommendation features to help shoppers make informed choices, reconfirmation via an
email as well as an option of cancelling the order before the shipment is processed.
Returns comprise about 15 to 20 per cent of forward shipments; four to six per cent being

25. attributed to logistics failure. The rest are customer initiated returns, either before or after
the delivery. The returns of delivery could be an expensive affair for an e-commerce
retailer, as it pushes up the average cost of delivery by nearly 50 per cent due to two-way
courier charges.
 Cashon Delivery (COD):
The adoption of electronic payments as well as credit card penetration is low in India as
compared to global averages. This has led to the adoption of COD services to increase the
number of transactions and acquire first-time customers rapidly. This also gives the
consumer the choice to ‘touch and feel’ the product before paying for it. This option is
expected to remain a prominent mode of payment and could hold as much as 60 to 70 per
cent share in total shipments going forward, with the growth of e-commerce retail in tier-
II and tier-III cities. However, COD adds to the complexity of cash handling and
leakages. The current remittance cycle of once in two weeks is seeing a shift towards a
48-hour remittance. On-time COD remittance is crucial to reduce the lockup of working
capital. Usually, COD is a chargeable service and the charges can range from a fixed
amount of INR21 to 35, to a 1.5 to two per cent of the product value.
Figure: Overview of the e-Commerce retail supply chain.
Sources: (KPMG, 2015)

26. 2.5 E-commerce industry workedon some major problems
The sustained growth of over 50 percent in the Indian e-commerce retail sector underlines the
need for ‘efficient and sustainable logistics operations’ for various sizes of e-commerce
retailersin India. The growing prominence of the marketplace model and the increasing
penetration of e-commerce are likely to alter the way e-commerce logistics functions in India.
E-commerce retail companies continuously work to introduce innovative business models and
technology-driven approaches. Convenient payment options, customer-friendly policies, speedy
deliveries and easy returns drive customers to online channels. Further, concepts such as ‘online
and application (app) only’ sales, ‘by invite only’ discounts, special discount coupons, cash-back
policies and special online festivals continue to drive customers to shop online.
Retail e-commerce drives significant investment and value for the Indian logistics sector and has
emerged as an important segment in this spectrum. Growth in this industry has resulted in the
emergence of new service requirements and hence, a new class/section of logistics operators.
Several e-commerce retail companies have also invested in building their logistics networks and
capability, recognizing logistics as a key variable to drive customer experience and reach.
The logistic needs of the industry are evolving rapidly with the changing business requirements.
The industry has been witnessing a rapid scale-up in service orientation and complexity with an
ever-increasing emphasis on service levels, increased penetration in tier-II and tier-III cities,
surged Cash on Delivery (COD) services, geographic penetration and supply chain security
requirements. This evolution takes place while coping with the legacy of infrastructure and
regulatory woes, which have long hampered logistics efficiency.
Logistics is thus a key enabler for growth of the e-commerce retail sector and is increasingly
emerging as a differentiator in terms of customer service and satisfaction. To build-up their scale
while sustaining business margins, e-commerce companies and logistics providers need to work
in collaboration to drive the industry forward.

27. 2.6 Role of logistics in e-commerce retail
Logistics is a key enabler for growth of the e-commerce retail industry and is increasingly
emerging as a differentiator in terms of customer service and satisfaction. Logistics in e-
commerce retail is evolving with growing business requirements, and is acting as an important
lever for business growth. The logistics sector specific to e-commerce retailing in India was
valued at USD0.2 billion in 2014 and is projected to witness a CAGR of ~48 per cent in the up
coming five years to reach USD2.2 billion by 2020.
While many e commerce retailer have partnered with logistic service providers to fulfill their
business requirements, some players have also invested in building in-house
logistics capabilities. While a large share (as much as 50 per cent) of the e-commerce logistics
market is commanded by in-house logistics players, the other 50 per cent is controlled by third-
party logistics (3PLs) service providers including traditional Logistics Service Providers (LSPs),
e-commerce focused logistics providers and India Post. However, apart from increasing
competition and the rising demand from tier-III and remote locations, an addressable market is
expected to be about 45 per cent of the total, which could be close to USD1 billion in 2020. Also,
the focus is now shifting from standard to specialized deliveries, which requires 3PLs to invest in
new capabilities and building infrastructure
Figure: E-commerce retail logistics market (KPMG, 2015)

28. 2.7 Why Customer Prefer E-commerce?
Implementing an e-Business project necessarily involves the deployment of a network or web-
interface connecting company-specific services to the client. The implementation of just
computer tools is not enough; any-Business project has to be implements in a new organization
based on new technologies. The concept of e-Business is very flexible and therefore covers all
possible uses of information and communication technologies (ICT).
 Making the relationships between the company and its clients
 Newer business opportunities are developed
 Flow of information is made easier
 Controlling different processes within the company
The objective is to create communication between the company and its internal processes to
better control internal and external measures. The e-business awareness in India has increased
with fast adaption of internet and internet based service in today’s post economic liberalization
scenario. The World internet statistics reveal that India is one of the emerging nations for internet
user and stands fourth-largest country after China, US and Japan. Although, India stands fourth
in population-wise internet usage still it has lower population penetration percentage 6.9 whereas
US has population percentage.
2.8 Delivery services in e-commerce e-Tail: Express and holiday deliveries
Logistics service providers offer a variety of delivery options in terms of a delivery time
window. These include express deliveries — time-definite deliveries, same-day delivery, next-
day delivery and holiday deliveries. With the evolution of customer needs, the demand for
occasion-led gifting and last-minute shopping have increased, leading to the emergence of same-
day/ next-day deliveries. Express deliveries help in building customer confidence and bridge
thetime gap between the offline and online buying experience; thus leading to higher number of
repeat customers. These fall under premium services and are chargeable to customers, making it
an attractive category for LSPs.

29. 2.8.1 Regulatory environment for E-commerce retail
The regulatory environment for e-commerce retail sector in India is currently evolving. In terms
of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policies, 100 per cent FDI is allowed under the automatic
route in Business-to-Business (B2B) e-commerce activities, which refers to buying and selling
by a company through an e-commerce platform. Such companies would engage only in B2B e-
commerce and not in retail trading. FDI, until recently, was prohibited in Business-to-Consumer
(B2C) e-commerce segment.3 However, in a press note (issued on 10 November 2015), the
Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, has
permitted companies with foreign investment engaged in Single Brand Retail Trading (SBRT)
activities to undertake B2C sales through e-commerce upon satisfaction of prescribed conditions.
These conditions are similar to the conditions prescribed under SBRT through physical stores,
including the rule of 30 percent local sourcing for FDI beyond 51 percent. Further, sourcing
norms have been liberalized for ‘state of art’ and ‘cutting edge technology’ under the SBRT
route subject to government’s approval.
These changes to the FDI policy on SBRT shall be effective on the issuance of the press note by
DIPP. We expect these conditions to be reiterated in the formal press note to be issued by the
Government of India on this issue. It is important to note here that the press note on November
10, 2015, provides that Indian brands are equally eligible for undertaking SBRT. It has also been
provided that certain conditions of the FDI policy, such as products to be sold under the same
brand internationally and investment by nonresident entity/entities as brand owner or under
legally tenable agreement with the brand owner, will not be made applicable in case of FDI in
Indian brands. The press note also provides that Indian brands should be owned and controlled
by resident Indian citizens and/or companies, which are owned and controlled by resident Indian
citizens. In terms of taxation, the excise tax is levied at the central level, while sales tax at the
state levels, along with octroi entry taxes in select jurisdictions. The rules governing sales tax for
commercial and e-commerce retail shipments also vary across regions with regards to there
required forms, their validity, exemption levels, etc. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is
however expected to alleviate these concerns.
A favorable regulatory environment would be key to unleash the potential of e-commerce. The
implementation and roll-out of GST could simplify tax and jurisdictional laws for e-commerce.

30. The real and perceived benefits of allowing FDI in the Indian retail sector such as efficiency in
operations, creation of jobs, investments in the back-end infrastructure and its overall
contribution to economy also holds true for the e-commerce sector. In the unorganized retail
sector in India, e-commerce is not a threat, considering factors such as a minimal product
category overlap, the perishable nature of goods sold at grocery stores, small transaction size for
such goods and different target consumer profiles. The much-needed capital infusion, however,
needs to be facilitated either by further relaxing the existing FDI norms applicable to multi brand
retail trading through e-commerce or by encouraging domestic sources of funding. The
establishment of a well-administered yet supportive FDI framework requires key considerations
around the list of product categories that could be sold by e-commerce entities ,the modus
operandi for sourcing of products, treatment of strategic and financial investments, high/low cap
on investment and the mandatory investment in back-end infrastructure.
The government, regulatory agencies, logistics service providers, payment processing
gateways, other supporting parties and e-commerce players are beginning to step-up and address
these challenges. We expect the introduction of GST as a positive step towards simplifying the
tax structure on the sales of goods and services. The varied interpretation of intricate tax norms
and complex inter-state taxation rules make e-commerce operations difficult to manage and to
stay compliant to the Indian Tax Code. The government should study the taxation and
jurisdictional laws to address the multijurisdictional nature of e-commerce transactions.
Additionally, clarity around the interpretation of the tax laws for transactions involving
information products needs to be provided. The much-needed capital infusion, however, needs to
be facilitated either by relaxing the existing FDI norms applicable to inventory based consumer
e-commerce or by encouraging domestic sources of funding.
The establishment of a well-administered yet supportive FDI framework requires key
considerations around the list of product categories that could be sold by e-commerce entities,
the modus operandi for sourcing of products, treatment of strategic and financial investments, the
high/low cap on investment and the mandatory investment in back-end infrastructure.

31. 2.9 Scopes of E-commerce Industry in India
The e-business concept is new in Indian economy but has significantly evolved benefitting
economy with higher gains. The Indian traditional marketing system is adsorbing the new
technological approach in-order to cope with international market and vast growing Indian
consumer market. Since, e-Business scenario is recent in Indian market therefore it is necessary
to understand the overall Indian market evolution, a brief outline of E-Business and its effect on
various scenarios of Indian economy including IT and education is discussed. The e-business is
part of new technology adopted in every sector of market benefitting the economy with wider
scope and approachability with higher consumer base and consumer satisfaction. The open
international market and globalization has pushed market and economy to adopt the new
technology usage to cope up with larger tasks and data with high level of perfection. The study
shows enormous potential for e-Business but has to go with consumer protection and company-
client data safety at every stage.
"E-business" is defined as the application of information and communication technologies (ICT)
which support all the activities and realms of business. E-business focuses on the use of ICT to
enable the external activities and relationships of the business with customers. Electronic
business methods enable enterprises to link their internal and external data processing systems
more efficiently and flexibly and serve better to the needs and expectations of their customers. E-
business uses web-based technology to improve relationships with customers.
It is widely accepted today that new technologies, in particular to the Internet, modify
communication between the different parties in the professional world, viz:
 The internal functioning of the company, including company-employee relationships,
 The relationship of the company with its different partners and suppliers.
 Relationships between the company and its clients,

32. The term "e-Business" refers to the integration, within the company, of tools based on ICT to
improve their functioning for the company, its clients, and its partners. E-Business no longer
only applies to those companies all of whose activities are based on the internet, but also to
traditional companies. The term eCommerce, which is frequently mixed up with the term e-
Business, although, only covers one aspect of eBusiness, i.e. the use of an online support for the
relationship building between a company and clients.
The impact of e-business is not only important with respect to company and client relationship
but also to improve performance and efficiency within the company. Local Area Network (LAN)
helps building faster communication within the company leading to saving high cost and
precious time. One of most effective tool globally adapted by many organizations is developed
by SAP AG, Germany, commonly known as SAP. The SAP is benefitting the organizations in
numerous ways and few advantages are as below:
 Updated once only and implemented company-wide
 Provides real-time information
 Creates better efficient work environment for employees
 Allows easier global integration.
2.10 Online retail/ e-Tailing
 Organized retail is growing at a faster pace than total retail.
 Organized retail still forms a small portion of the total retail market.
 Online retailers are moving to the inventory-holding model from the consignment model.
 Online retailers are developing in-house logistics capabilities.
 Logistics players need to gear up their operating models to tap the huge opportunity
presented by online retail.
 Complex tax structures are making decisions relating to warehouse locations difficult for
online retailers.

33.  Organized retail players are faced with the big question of entering the online retail
market.
 Online retail players need to focus on innovative business models to increase their
margins.
 The share of apparels is expected to increase in online retail.
 Underpenetrated segments, such as online groceries, are expected to grow.
 COD has emerged as a preferred payment choice for customers.
Online retail, in its various forms, has been drawing the maximum interest among all the
segments of the internet commerce market.43 A recent report by comScore Inc. indicated that
60% of online users in India visited retail sites in November 2011.44 The Indian retail industry
was estimated at US$528 billion in 2012 (growing at 11% per annum ).
A significant portion (90.4%) of Indian retail is unorganized. Nevertheless, the share of
organized retail is growing at 24% per annum. Currently, online retail constitutes 1% of the total
organized retail market in India and is set to make a higher contribution to the growth of
organized retail in the country. According to IAMAI, online retail clocked sales of nearly
US$572 million in 2011 and accounted for 6% of overall internet commerce revenues in India
(grew at a CAGR of 25% since 2007). The market is expected to witness rapid growth in years to
come. While travel is the largest segment among all the internet commerce categories, internet
retail would reportedly match the travel segment, by the value of goods sold, within three to four
years and, thereafter, surpass it.
2.11 Technology in e-commerce
The boom in the Indian e-commerce sector could be attributed to the enhanced use of
technology, which has helped improve e-commerce in areas across the supply chain, inventory
management, improved customer experience and loss prevention. From an increased usage of
mobiles and tablets, the availability of COD services, superior technology platforms, inventory
tracking and automated fulfilment centres, etc. have all been driving growth in this sector.
The increased penetration of internet services and faster internet services like 3G and
4G have contributed to the ease of selling and buying/purchasing products online. The use of
digital marketing including mailers, digital billboards, mobile messaging and e-mails also help to

34. target specific potential customers with special offers. Online advertisements and electronic
word-of-mouth via social networking sites further entice people to buy products. For instance,
certain mobile companies exclusively sell via websites and mobile applications. More than 50
per cent of the orders for e-commerce retail giants are generated via mobile applications1. In this
context, the COD option has been instrumental in driving retail e-commerce growth in a
developing market like India, with low penetration of debit or credit cards or even bank accounts
to make online purchases1. Features such as ‘online only discounts’, online coupons and free
shipping facilities could further help in expansion of this sector. The growth in e-commerce
along with low credit and debit card penetration has also led to an increased usage of mobile
wallets in the country. One of the largest player in the mobile wallets market in India has more
than 104 million users who carry out over 75 million transactions per month.
2.11.1 Application Programme Interface (API) integration of e-commerce retailers’ system
with the 3PLs system: The success of thee-commerce retail business is dependent on the speed
of the supply chain. Data transfer for 3PLs is currently manual via e-mails, with little to no
integration in the supply chain. In the near future, we can expect to witness an increase in usage
of API and system integration between the e-commerce retailer and 3PL for real-time and an sun
interrupted exchange of data and information, for immediate action and query resolution. This is
likely to help improve the visibility of shipments and also ascertain reasons for delay, in case of
any.
2.11.2 Integration of systems in case of a reverse supply chain: Returns management is a key
challenge specially with e-commerce retailers providing options of try and buy, and a return
policy of seven to 10 days. No 3PLs currently offer real-time visibility or updates on the status of
reverse shipments. Now, 3PLs are moving towards dedicated returns management centers which
carry out quality checks, re labeling and handover of cargo for return to warehouses of sellers or
e-commerce retailers. The future is expected to witness investment in technology by e-commerce
retailers and 3PLs for their reverse logistics supply chain.

35. 2.11.3 Launch of Card Swipe on Delivery: The sector is expected to move towards Card Swipe
on Delivery (CSoD) and Point of Sale (PoS) machines for payments at the customers’ end.
Transactions on CSoD are expected to also increase due to a higher average selling price of
products. This could help in ease of cash management required in case of COD orders and help
to drive growth in the sector.
At present, e-commerce retailers opt for superior technology platforms and integrated
order management systems for offering automated fulfillment centres. The sector is witnessing a
shift with fast-moving mobile and social technologies. E-commerce channels are integrating their
customer relationship management software, social media marketing and search engine
enhancement practices for better supply chain management.

36. Chapter -3
Company Profile
3.1 About Us: Corporate Overview
Times Internet is the largest Indian Internet Network and the digital venture of Times of India,
India's largest media and entertainment group. TIL websites are among the fastest growing Web
/ Mobile based networks worldwide. Since its inception in 1999, Times Internet has led the
Internet revolution in India and has emerged as India's foremost web entity, running diverse
portals and niche websites. As per com Score web alone, it reaches 60 million visitors. As per
Google analytics it reaches over 150m visitors and serves 2 billion page views every month
across web and mobile, with businesses across news, entertainment, sports, local, ecommerce,
classifieds, startup investments, local partnerships and more. Today, it has a diversified set of
22+ digital consumer-facing businesses.
In addition, we are also helping global organizations keen to expand their reach in India using
our online media platforms. The alliances range from licensing partnerships to investments and
acquisition. In the last year alone, we have made six acquisitions, thirteen global partnerships, 7
minority investments and over 20 investments into start-ups through T-Labs in the Indian
ecosystem.
TIL proudly carries with it 175 years of prestige associated with the Times of India Group yet
stands independent as a collective of start-ups offering dynamic digital products. The Times
Group is a long standing leader in the print business, as well as an emerging leader in all other
forms of media, including radio, TV, magazines, out of home, and more. The Group's key brands
include The Times of India, the world's largest broadsheet English daily; The Economic Times,
India's largest (and the world's second largest) financial daily; Femina, India's largest women's
magazine; Film fare, India's largest English film magazine; Radio Mirchi, India's largest FM
radio network; Times Now and ET Now, India's leading English news and business news
channels and Zoom, a leading general entertainment channel.

37. 3.1.1 About India Times Shopping
Indiatimes Shopping - Online Store
Indiatimes Shopping, a part of India's leading media house - The Times of India Group, is one of
the country's oldest e-commerce platform that came into being in the year 2000. Envisioned to
provide a hassle-free shopping experience and all that a happy customer wants, we offer low
prices, huge collection, fast delivery and a satisfying user experience. We have an extensive
range of products in all major categories like Apparels, Footwear, Watches, Sunglasses, Bags,
Kitchen, Electronics, Home D'cor, Jewellery, Computers, Flowers & Gifts and Health & Beauty.
Flip through the widest assortment of products that are offered by the renowned brands like
Puma, Adidas, Nike, Guess, Casio, Fastrack, Revlon, Maybelline, Nokia, Samsung, Gitanjali,
UCB, HP, Sony, Lee, Woodland and Pepe Jeans to name a few. Indiatimes has almost anythings
and everything a customer would like to explore online. Discover the best gifts for all occasions
through our Flowers & Gifts category and grab the best deals online. With its fresh offers like
Midnight Sale, Rupee 1 Store, Fashion Fridays, Wanted Wednesday and lot more, you can have
your daily dose of online shopping at best prices. Browse through the different categories and
choose for Cash on Delivery or online payment mode at the checkout and have the best online
shopping experience.
We also pioneer in the field of print business with the name of "The Times of India Reader's
Offer", which is associated with the print arm of BCCL. Available in different cities in India, this
deal include includes products from electronics, kitchen appliances, mobile phones and
accessories, fashion accessories, health and beauty products, computers, laptops, tablets, TVs
and music players from private labels and famous brands. All these and many other combo
products can also be booked just by dialing numbers showed at our TV Shopping channel, which
we have started especially for those who are not well-versed with internet or online shopping.
With so many things to offer at best available price, we endeavour to give a hassle-free and
enjoyable shopping experience to our discerning customers.

38. 3.2 Payment Information
Indiatimes Shopping accepts payments in the following modes:
Payment Mode Payment Options
Online Credit Cards, Debit Cards, Net Banking, Amex eZeClick
Offline Cash On Delivery
Mobile Payments Paymate
Reward Redemption Miles and More
Gift Coupons(GC) Promotional GC
3.2.1 Online Payment Mode
1. Credit Cards
Please note that we accept only Domestic Cards.
 American Express
 Visa
 MasterCard
2. Debit Cards
Please note that we accept only Domestic Cards.
 Visa
 MasterCard
 Maestro

39. 3. EMI on Credit Cards:
Currently EMI facility is provided to HDFC bank and ICICI bank credit card holders only for 3 ,
6 , 9 & 12 months and the minimum order value to avail the EMI payment option is Rs 3,000.
Indiatimes Shopping does not charge any processing fee. However, the Bank charges a fixed
annual interest rate directly to the customers opting for EMI and the interest amount paid to bank
depends on the tenure selected. This will be a Bank and a customer direct relationship.
In case of any kind of refund in an EMI transaction, interest already billed in a particular
transaction will not be refundable. Customer would be required to contact the banks directly in
case of any issues at the below mentioned numbers.
HDFC customer care No.011-61606161 (Delhi). For other locations please click on :
http://www.hdfcbank.com/personal/find-your-nearest/find-phone-banking.
For ICICI customer care numbers, please click on http://www.icicibank.com/customer-care.html
Please note following cards are not eligible for EMI transactions:
• Corporate Card
• Business Card
• EMI Card
• ICICI Bank Virtual Card
Internet Banking
4. Indiatimes accept payment through Internet Banking for the following banks:
1. Axis Bank
2. Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait
3. Bank of India
4. Citibank

40. 5. Corporation Bank
6. Deutsche Bank
7. Development Credit Bank
8. Federal Bank
9. HDFC Bank
10. ICICI Bank
11. Indian Overseas Bank
12. IndusInd Bank
13. Industrial Development Bank of India
14. Jammu and Kashmir Bank
15. Karnataka Bank Ltd.
16. Karur Vysya Bank
17. Kotak Bank
18. Ratnakar Bank
19. South Indian Bank
20. State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur
21. State Bank of Hyderabad
22. State Bank of India
23. State Bank of Mysore
24. Union Bank of India
25. United Bank of India

41. 26. Vijaya bank
27. YES Bank
5. eZeClick by American Express
eZeClick by American Express helps to make online payments much easier and faster. This
service is available for American Express safe key enabled cards only. Whenever you have to
make a payment, just select eZeClick from the list of options at the payment page, enter your
user id and you will immediately receive an OTP (one-time-password) by email and SMS which
you can enter to complete the payment process.
3.2.2 Offline Payment Mode
1. Cash on Delivery:
The Cash on delivery (COD) option is available for Mobiles, Electronic Gadgets, Music,
Movies, Books, Magazines, Games and Toys. However there is a possibility that COD may not
be applicable on few products due to following reasons:
1. Your cart value has exceeded. INR 10,000
2. Cash on Delivery is not available for selected shipping address
3. If you have more than one item in your cart, then Cash on Delivery is not applicable on
any one of the item.
4. To ensure your location is covered, please check your pin code on order detail page.
Terms & Conditions
• COD option cannot be combined with any other payment option like Reward Points, Gift
Certificates, Special Promotion Codes or Pre-paid account on an order if you wish to pay by cash
on delivery.
• Pay cash at the time of delivery to the courier. Payment through any other paymode e.g.
cheque or demand draft will not be accepted. There is no additional cost for availing COD.

42. 3.2.3 Mobile Payment Mode
1. Paymate:
Paymate helps you shop online and make payments using your mobile phone. All payments are
authorized by you with a secure 4-digit PIN thereby ensuring complete control and security. You
can pay using Paymate, only if you have registered yourself to use this service.
For registered users, as per the recent RBI guidelines on the prepaid instrument we request you
to submit a duly filled KYC form along with the required documents to Paymate in order to
process your transaction favorably. You may also visit
http://www.giftmate.co.in/GMConvertVoucherEmailer/VoucherConversionemailer.html for
more information about KYC compliance.
To register for Pay Mate, logon to www.paymate.co.in
3.2.4 Reward Redemption Program
1. Miles & More :
This is a redemption program where Miles & More members are offered latest products in
Electronics, Health, Mobiles, Beauty and several other categories in exchange for miles with
doorstep delivery anywhere in India.
Every five miles will be equivalent to Re.1. Customers will be displayed "Net Payable Lufthansa
Miles" (i.e. Cart Value X 5) on Payment page during checkout process.
3.2.5 Gift Coupons
1. Indiatimes Gift Coupons
These coupons are an optional payment method that you can choose at the time of payment.
Indiatimes gift coupons can be exchanged for a discount on a part of total order value while
purchasing product online, therefore only the remaining amount would have to be paid through
credit card, debit card or net banking.

43. The gift coupon consists of an alphanumeric 10-digit code, such as SR124788410855889. This
code identifies the promotion for which the voucher is being used and the criteria for using the
coupon.
Receiving gift coupons
You may simply visit our website http://shopping.indiatimes.com/GCOffers to check out running
offers. Please note limited redemptions allowed on first come first serve basis.
Types of discounts
Gift coupons offer the following type of discounts:
• Flat Discount: Flat amount will be deducted from total order amount. For example, Rs. 1000
off on order value Rs. 3,000 and above.
• Percentage Discount: A percentage will be deducted from total order amount. For example,
15% off on order value Rs. 3,000 and above.
• Free Gifts: For example, USB data cable free for customers purchasing Nokia handsets.
Conditions of use
There are specific conditions for using gift voucher for a purchase:
• You have to be registered on the site to be able to receive and use gift coupon.
• Each coupon is valid for only one single purchase.
• Each coupon will have specific criteria that will determine its validity. Please check these
criteria before deciding to use a gift voucher.
• Each coupon is valid up to a certain period, so be sure to use it within this period or else the
coupon may expire.
• Can be clubbed with online pay modes only

44. 3.3 Refund Policy
We thank you and appreciate your purchase with us. Please read the policy, conditions and
process carefully as they will give you important information and guidelines about your rights
and obligations as our customer, concerning any purchase you make through us unless
specifically stated otherwise on our product pages or readers offer advertisements. We make
every effort to service the order/s placed with us as per the specifications and timelines
mentioned against each product. If due to any reason, unavoidable circumstances or beyond the
limitations of the merchants the order is not shipped by the seller then the order shall be
cancelled and refunded. In the event the order/product is delivered and has been cancelled for
refund due to product fault, delivery of wrong product, partial product, etc the refund is
processed.
The order may be cancelled before shipment due to any of the following reasons:
1. The specific product/model is out of Stock.
2. The order could not be shipped within the specified timeline.
3. On customers request
4. The shipping address is not serviceable.
5. Any other reason beyond the control of merchants or Indiatimes.
The orders may be cancelled post shipment and delivery due to any of the following reasons:
1. Established defect in the product which the seller is not able to either replace or repair.
2. Correct product could not be delivered.
3. Shipping address found to be untraceable, wrong, incomplete, locked and customer not
available.
4. Customer refused to take the delivery, refund would not be applicable incase of
perishable products, like flowers, cakes, etc and/or incase of made to order and personalized
products, like mugs, T-shirts with personal pictures.

45. 5. Products damaged during transit and delivery not accepted.
Caution: Please do not accept delivery of any item whose packaging is damaged or tampered
with in any manner.
3.3.1 Conditions:
1. Ensure that the product is in seller warranty.
2. Cancellation and refund requests for products shall not be eligible under manufacturer
warranty.
3. The refund shall be processed only after the product is shipped back and received by
merchant.
4. Need to attach a note along with the product returned for refund. The note should clearly
state your name and address, contact number, and order number. Describe the problem in your
own words. Without your order details processing refund / replacement would not be possible.
5. The return courier awb/tracking number not intimated to Indiatimes customer support
team is not eligible for refund
6. The order returned must accompany all the accessories (including freebies) which were
serviced along with the order else the cost of the accessories shall be recovered from the refund
amount.
7. Any charges levied as tax is not eligible for refund.
Important Note: Any Gift coupon circulated as promotional offer would not be refunded in case
of cancellation of the order.
3.3.2 Refund Process:
1. Please connect with our customer care via email or call.
2. The customer care team will validate the request by checking the timelines, product type,
warranty terms, etc and shall take the request for refund or exchange

46. 3. Ensure to collect the return address from Indiatimes customer care.
4. Pack the product properly and label the product with the order number, return address and
your address.
5. Follow the instructions of customer care carefully for packaging and returning the product
using courier services.
6. Ensure that the awb / tracking number is shared with Indiatimes customer care.
7. The order shall be considered for refund only if the seller receives the product in undamaged
condition [there should be no scratches, no dents etc.]
Caution: Please ensure to pack the product properly before handling it over to courier.
Exclusion:
A refund can be refused if the following conditions are met.
1. The product is completely broken and unusable or with scratches or incomplete as per the
seller claims from the customer.
2. The product is returned beyond the required return date or you have not informed us about the
concern during the warranty period.
3. The above process does not apply to books, movie and music cd, DVD, Blue-ray, cd roms,
magazines and flower and confectionary items.
4. The order returned does not accompany all the accessories (including freebies) which were
serviced along with the order.
5. Any other product which Times Internet Limited deems fit from time to time.
Important Note:
• On cancellation of an order, you are entitled to receive refund based on pay mode table
mentioned in refund timelines plus the shipping charges.

47. • shopping.indiatimes.com is not liable to pay any penalty or compensation to the customer for
cancellation of any order, for reason mentioned above.
3.3.3 Refund Timelines:
Pay mode
Credit Card
Net Banking
Debit Card
Indiatimes Gift Certificate
COD -Cash On Delivery
Demand draft/ Cheque
Refund Mode
Credit Card
Bank Account Online Transfer
Bank Account Online Transfer
Indiatimes Gift Certificate
Cheque
Cheque
3.3.4 Refund from the date of cancellation of order
5-10 Working Days*
5-10 Working Days*
5-10 Working Days*

48. 5-10 Working Days*
8-10 Working Days*
8-10 Working Days*
* Note Working Days are Monday To Friday excluding holidays
Please note: You can check the status of your refund in Your Account on the order's summary
page.
• We will process the refund after receipt of the product by Times Internet Limited or its business
partner. Refund will be processed based on the mode of payment of the order Refund processed
through Credit card / Debit card will reflect in the next Credit Card/ Bank statement.
• Refund Cheque will be issued in the billing name unless otherwise advised by customers.
• In case the refund Cheque is lost by customer, Cheque will be reissued in15 days on the receipt
of affidavit.
• In case of incorrect name on the refund Cheque, a new Cheque will be reissued in 15 days on
the receipt of original Cheque from the customer.
• If your refund doesn't appear in Your Account, and the processing time for your payment
method has passed, contact customer care for further assistance.
3.4 What is Indiatimes Return Policy?
At Indiatimes we work very hard to deliver the best products and shopping experience to you.
However, sometimes because of the scale of operation a few exceptional cases do happen. If for
any reason you do not feel satisfied with the product delivered to you then please get in touch
with our Customer Service team for an appropriate resolution.
We will try our best to replace the product to your satisfaction and if that is not possible because
of some operational constraint then we will provide full refund as per the requirement. In all such

49. circumstances, before using the product, please get in touch with our Customer Service Team
who will guide you on the process for the same.
And in case you have received your order with the outer packaging tampered/meddled, then
please capture a snap of the same and share with us.
To make things fair for all of us and provide you with the benefits of the Return Policy, we
adhere to below mention points.
 All items to be returned must be unused and in their original condition. The original tags,
packaging should be intact.
 Once we receive the return from you, we will provide you with a Gift Coupon (G.C.) of up to
INR 250/- on your email, to compensate for the shipping charges you paid to return the
product.
 We would not be able to accept a product if it shows sign of being broken or tampered with by
you.
 We expect that while returning the product you will pack the product very safely and securely.
We won't be able to entertain any damage/lost in Transit (For example:- If a complaint was
raised for Wrong Product Delivery and the sent item got damaged in the transit then we will not
be responsible for the damage and eventually may not be in a position of replacement for the
original one as well).
Iportant Note: We may not be able to exchange products bought during sale or
discount.Replacement/exchange is subject to product/ stock availability.
3.4.1 What are the Products covered under the Return Policy?
We accept all items except
 innerwear
 cosmetics, deodorants, perfumes, perishable items
 socks, toys and any free items received
 Also, please note that will not be able to accept any returns for GOLD /SILVER items and
customized jewellery.
In case you are not satisfied with clothing or footwear product or it does not fit you well, please
feel free to ask for a replacement. The Process of Return would remain the same.

50. 3.4.2 What to do if I want Replacement/Refund?
Please follow these steps to claim Replacement/Refund without any hiccups
1. Give us a call on 09024666666 or drop an email at customerservice@indiatimes.co.in within 48
hours of delivery.
2. Register your complaint and get a Complaint ID by the customer service team. This is
mandatory information which is needed to know about the status of the complaint and for
returning the Product.
3. Please pack the product back in its packing and mention the following details
Complaint ID: (As provided by the customer care) for the Return.
Order #: Number generated at the time of order Placement.
Reason for Return: Please choose a reason from the below mentioned list :
 Defective Product
 Damaged Delivery
 Incorrect Product Delivered
 Others- If others then please specify (Please mention the reason in Hindi /English only)
Your full Contact Details: Your name, address, phone number and email address.
DOA (DEAD ON ARRIVAL) certificate:
Needed only if you are returning a Defective Manufacture warranty product.
Picture of Damaged Product: Needed only if you are returning a Damaged Manufacture
warranty product.
You have to return it to the following Address:
Times Internet Limited,
TOP Floor,
10, Daryaganj (Near Happy School),
Delhi-110002
If you got a pickup scheduled, then keep your package ready. If you are sending it via
courier, please ensure that the courier provides order tracking and you got the courier receipt
with you. We will refund the courier charges up to Rs 250 in form of a Gift Coupon (G.C.).

51. 6. Send an email to customerservice@indiatimes.co.in with a scanned copy of courier
charges receipt, please mention the Order # and the Complaint ID clearly in email and also send
picture of the product if you received a damaged product. This email is required to reimburse
you for the courier charges you paid for returning the product.
3.4.3 Do you provide a pick up from the doorstep in case I want to return a product?
We will not be able to provide pickup from your doorstep, however in case of heavy goods (in
terms of weight/size) or the City from which it has to be picked up, we may consider picking the
product. This decision is solely at the discretion of the company/designated authorities. For any
of the products sent by you, we will refund the courier charges up to Rs 250 in form of a Gift
Coupon (G.C.).
3.4.4 What is the return procedure if I have received a Defective/Damaged Manufacture
warranty product?
Defective/ Damaged Product
In case you have received a defective/ damaged product, please report the fault to the nearest
authorized service centre. They will check the product and repair the product to your satisfaction.
If they are not able to do that then they will declare the product as DOA (DEAD ON ARRIVAL)
and issue a DOA certificate to you. If you have the DOA certificate with you then please send a
scanned copy of the DOA certificate to customerservice@indiatimes.co.in. The Return Process
would remain the same as mentioned above. As the DOA policy varies from Brand to Brand so
please get in touch with our customer care and we will assist you in the procedure of claiming a
DOA certificate from the Manufacture.
If damage can't be repaired by authorized service centre, please register a complaint within 48
Hrs of delivery to start the refund/replacement of your product. Also, please take a picture of the
product and include it in your email to customerservice@indiatimes.co.in.
3.4.5 What is the return procedure if I have received a wrong product?
In case if you have received a wrong product from our side then please register a complaint
within 24 Hrs of delivery to start the refund/replacement of your product.

52. 3.4.6 What is the return procedure if I have received a Defective/Damaged Seller warranty
product?
The return process would remain the same. Please register your complain within 24 Hrs of
delivery along with along with photographs of the damage product and packaging. photographs
of the damage product and packaging and the replacement will be shipped once a confirmation
call is made by the Customer Service team for the return.
3.4.7 What are the time lines provided for the Replacement/Refund?
Once we have received your product back, it would be sent for a Quality check to our
Replacement Verification team. The replacement process would be initiated within 5 business
days of receipt of the product.
In case a Replacement is asked for then accordingly arrangements would be made to ship the
replacement product at no extra cost, however if the same product is no more available then
refund would be arranged.
In case of a Refund request, the same would be processed within 5 -7 business days after our
Replacement Verification team has certified the refund.
Do I get back the courier charges after I return back the Product?
We will refund the courier charges at a flat rate of INR 250/- or actual (whichever is lesser) in
the form of a Gift Coupon (G.C.) which can be redeemed on our website in future. This would be
processed within 5-7 business days after we have received the above mentioned address along
with the Email with the Courier Receipt attached.
3.4.8 What is the Payment Mode for Refund?
It would remain the same as paid by you to Indiatimes while placing an order. If you paid online,
then it will be returned online, if you paid by Cash of Delivery option then it would be refunded
to you via Demand Draft which will be sent to your address as mentioned while returning the
product.
I ordered Cash on Delivery (COD) order and paid the shipping charges. If I return the
product, will I be paid back the Shipping charges as well?

53. Only the Product amount would be refunded as we do not refund the shipping charges paid by
you. Please note that the charges you pay for the courier while returning the product will be paid
as a Gift Coupon as per our policy.
3.5 SWOT Analysis of Indiatimes Shopping with USP, Competition, STP (Segmentation,
Targeting, Positioning) - Marketing Analysis
Indiatimes Shopping
Parent Company The Times of India Group
Category Ecommerce
Sector Online Retail-Apparel, Electronics and more
Tagline/ Slogan -
USP Wide variety of products across many segments
STP
Segment Customers who prefer online medium of shopping
Target Group Middle income online shoppers
Positioning One stop store to cater to many customer needs
SWOT Analysis
Strengths
1.Wide variety of categories under its portfolio including
footwear, apparel, electronics, home décor etc
2. Programmes like Times of India Readers Offer zone helps in
increasing its brand visibility.
3. Exclusive partnerships with brands like Aviva, Airtel and
Lufthansa to assist them in their ecommerce operations.

54. 4. 8,000,000 plus products are available on sale under its white
label operations.
5. It also earns revenues in the form of ad sales.
6. It is present across all major cities in India
Weaknesses
1. Lack of differentiation in the highly competitive ecommerce
world.
2. Limited advertising and marketing campaigns.
Opportunities
1. Leveraging the brand of times of India to increase its reach to
non metro cities.
2. Strong marketing campaign to project it as a reliable
ecommerce portal
3. More advertising and marketing can help boost the sales of the
company
Threats
1. Increased competition from similar ecommerce portals
2. Unfavorable govt policies
3. With lots of substitutes available, the brand can decline
market share
Competition
Competitors
1. Amazon
2. Snapdeal
3.Rediff Shopping
4.Naaptol
5.Flipkart
Source: (http://www.mbaskool.com)

55. 3.6 STP MODEL (Segmentation, Targeting, Positioning)
3.6.1Segmentation:
1. People Who Who Have Access to Internet
2. People Who Have Access to Social Networking Sites like Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Etc.
3.6.2 Targeting :
1. People Who Are The Frequent Users of Internet.
2. People Who Like Buying Their Products Online.
3. People Who Take Interests In Advertisements Which Are Shown on The Social Networking
Sites.
4.People Who Prefer Discounts & Rebates.
3.6.3 Positioning:
Who Says Money Can’t Buy Happiness? Indiatimes Shopping Brings The Best Products At
Even Better Prices. Start Shopping, Attain Bliss.
3.7 Future Scope
1. No. Of Internet Users Are Increasing Year After Year.
2. People Are Getting Involved In Online Shopping More Than The Traditional Way Of
Shopping.
3. People Don’t Like Wasting Much Time By Visiting Various Shops.
4. Rather They Expect Every Brand At One Place For The Convenience.
5. Thus, India Times Shopping Has Very Wide Scope Of Growth & Expansion In Future.
Source: (http://www.slideshare.net/r0786/india-times-shopping)

56. Figure: Product Lines offered by Indiatimes Shopping
INDIA TIMES
SHOPPING
Clothng
MENS &
WOMENS
WESTERN
WEAR
ETHNIC
WEAR
INNER &
SLEEPWEAR
WINTERWEA
R
FOOTWEAR
MENS &
WOMENS
CASUAL
SPORTS
FORMAL
ETHNIC
WAGES
KIDS
BOYS
GIRLS
MOBILE &
ACCESSORIES
MOBILE
HANDSETS
ACCESSORIES
WATCHES,
JEWELLARY
AND COINS
WATCHES
WOMENSMENS
JEWELLARY
EARINGS
NECKLACES
BANGELS
COINS
GOLD
SILVER
FASHION
ACCESSORIES
MENS &
WOMES
WALLETS ,
CLUTCHES
AND PURSES
SUNGLASSES
BRACLETS
BELTS
STOLES &
SCARVES
HATS ,CAPS
HOME AND
KITCHEN
KITHEN &
DINING
HOME
DECOR
BED & BATH
FURNITURE
FLOWER ,
GIRTS, CAKES
PERSONAL
CARE &
HEALTH
MAKE UP
GROOMING
FOOD AND
DRINKS
FRAGNANCE
R
SUPPLEMENT
S
TABLETS &
COMPUTERS
TABLETS
COMPUTER
ACCESSORIES
COMPUTERS
LAPTOP PC'S SOFTWARES
ELECTRONIS
WEARABLE
SMART
DEVICES
KITCHEN
APPLIANCES
HOME
APPLIANCES
AUTOMOBILE
ACCESSORIES
BOOKS &
STATIONARY
BOOKS
TIMES
GROUP
BOOKS
STATIONERY

57. Chapter - 4
Findings and Suggestion
4.1 Findings
 Transaction process of company is perfect.
 Website does not respond to customers reviews.
 Customer consider the website as fraud because they give fake product.
 Company sends duplicate product.
 Poor customer care representative.
 Poor refund policy.
 Poor return policy.
4.2 Suggestion
 Company must have good customer care representative.
 Should improve there refund and return policy.
 Should improve there pick-up services.

58. References
Coopers,P.H. (2014). E-commerce inindia. accelarating growth ,1-20.
Gangeshwer,D.K.(2013). International Journalof u- ande- Service. Scienceand Technology ,6, 1-8.
http://www.mbaskool.com.(n.d.).Retrievedfromhttp://www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/it-technology/12905-
indiatimes-shopping.html:http://www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/it-technology/12905-indiatimes-shopping.html
http://www.slideshare.net/r0786/india-times-shopping.(n.d.).Retrievedfromhttp://www.slideshare.net/r0786/india-
times-shopping:http://www.slideshare.net/r0786/india-times-shopping
KPMG. (2015). India’s e-commerce retail logistics growth story. India’s e-commerce retail logistics growth story , 1-32.