Flipkart Boost program launched to empower budding D2C brands

Through this new initiative, Flipkart will identify D2C brands with high potential and strong innovation stories and provide them end-to-end support covering planning, advertising, cataloguing, logistics, quality control and mentoring

Flipkart on Tuesday announced the launch of a new program called 'Flipkart Boost' for budding digital-first direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands to leapfrog into the next phase of growth via dedicated support.

The program reinforces the company's mission to offer growth opportunities to budding D2C brands. Through this new initiative, Flipkart will identify D2C brands with high potential and strong innovation stories and provide them end-to-end support covering planning, advertising, cataloguing, logistics, quality control and mentoring. The brands will be shortlisted based on the following criteria:

• digital-first direct-to-consumer
• growth potential
• sustainable revenue run rate
• focus on quality
• commitment to building long-lasting brand and marketing collaborations
• strong product mix and customer orientation

The e-commerce giant will facilitate a pitch day for these brands to secure potential funding from a network of leading venture capital funds and active investors in the D2C space. These include A91 Partners, DSG Consumer Partners, Fireside Ventures, MatrixPartners India, Sequoia Capital India and Stellaris Venture Partners.

Brands shortlisted via the Flipkart Boost program will be able to leverage Flipkart's expertise across functions using value-driven business insights, expand digital visibility, and penetrate various geographies with the ideal solutions to strengthen their presence and create measurable impact among customers, the company said in a press release on Tuesday.

Citing a 2020 report by Avendus Capital, Flipkart said that the D2C sector in India is currently worth USD44.6 billion (end of FY 2021) and is expected to be worth USD100 billion by 2025.

Based on the above-mentioned criteria, Made in India brands can now apply directly on the Flipkart seller platform, of which 100 brands will be shortlisted for the program this year. Applications for the same are open now.

The growing popularity of digital-first brands driven by a focus on specific customer needs demonstrates immense market potential. With the Flipkart Boost Programme, we aim to build and nurture these growing customer-focused businesses by providing them relevant mentoring that covers access to a network of investors, market intelligence, scalability programmes, and marketing engagements.

Ravi Iyer, Senior Vice President and Head, CorporateDevelopment, Flipkart.