Retail Tech Report Citation
Setia, P., Deodhar, S., & Dadhich, U. (2023). Digital Retail Channels and Consumers: The Indian Perspective. Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad.
About Retail Tech Consortium (RTC)
With an objective to promote an inclusive and responsible digital transformation in India, the Centre for Digital Transformation (CDT) at IIM Ahmedabad has been continuously undertaking cutting-edge industry-oriented research. In this regard, the CDT has partnered with leading retail firms and created a Retail Tech Consortium (RTC). The consortium hosts a common forum wherein industry partners discuss pressing issues related to the E-commerce sector and collaborate for the strategic development of the sector. These discussions on the shared platform are significant as India, in the last couple of years, has been undergoing rapid digital transformation, and a great scope exists for retail firms to innovate on the sides of technology, supply chain, and consumers. The consortium was created in August 2022 and since then has been joined by leading firms like Flipkart, OYO, Snapdeal, Croma, Fabindia, Unilever, P&G, Patanjali, StarQuick, Nykaa, Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), Kotak Mahindra Bank, etc. As more firms are joining, it is expected that RTC will be playing a key role in advancing the country’s retail sector and conducting advanced research.
The RTC engagement has also enabled CDT to conduct studies on Indian E-commerce – the first recent study completed with this collaboration is on “Digital Retail Channels and Consumers: The Indian Perspective”. The report was launched on 18th Feb 2024. The key highlight of this study is the findings from the Pan-India Consumer Survey of 35,000 consumers conducted by IIMA. The survey is the first of its kind in the country, which recorded the details of consumers’ last online shopping transactions and generated some interesting findings on consumer behaviour on digital retail platforms. The survey findings have been widely covered by leading periodicals and news channels and have been applauded on social media. A few examples of this coverage are illustrated below:
Press Release of the Completed Report Launch (18th Feb 2024)
Press Release about the RTC Conclaves (27th March 2023)
Interview of Prof. Pankaj Setia by CNBC Awaaz
Interview of Prof. Swanand Deodhar by Zee Business
Interview of Prof. Pankaj Setia by ABP News
With this and the other ongoing/planned studies, CDT is making continuous efforts to spearhead the industry-oriented research and RTC collaboration and contribute meaningfully to the digital transformation of the retail sector.
Please email digitaltransformation@iima.ac.in for more information.