From global to local
Government should stop ignoring local businesses
Government should stop ignoring local businesses
Hail small traders and businesses. They kept supplying essentials, when the big businesses couldn’t. 2nd stimulus package may focus on small businesses.
About 1.1 crore mom-and-pop stores and 3 lakh distributors-wholesalers, supplied essential commodities during the lock-down. Big retail brands and online e-commerce brands froze during the lock-down. On 22nd April India’s biggest grocery delivery startup Big Basket delivered about 3 lakh deliveries. According to KSA Technopak, a global consultancy firm, e-commerce players sell gross merchandise value (GMV) of $2.5 billion. It is less than 1% of $550-billion annual sales of food and groceries in India.
KSA Technopak Chairman Arvind Singhal said: “The size of the e-commerce business is exaggerated and very small in the overall merchandise business. And in the grocery and foods segment it is even smaller. So while e-commerce has a role, it is the small kirana and mom and pop shops who are playing a key role in keeping the supply going.”
Gurgaon suffered the most as it had the fewest neighbourhood stores. Government should focus on micro and local businesses. It won’t just unlock the capital, it will help withstand future emergencies.