Mahindra Group is the latest diversified conglomerate to enter the e-commerce space after the Tata Group and Reliance Industries. The company has floated a wholly-owned subsidiary Mahindra E-marketplace Pvt Ltd for its online foray.
Mahindra Group, with interests in sectors such as auto, IT, real estate, financial services and retail, has formally launched M2ALL.com, a portal from where consumers can buy all Mahindra products and also other complementary products such as auto ancillary parts and furniture.
The company plans to increase the number of products and range over the next two years. At present, only five of Mahindra Group’s 31 brands will have virtual stores at the marketplace.
VS Parthasarathy, Mahindra Group CFO and Chairman for the new venture, said: “India’s e-tailing market is expected to reach $50 billion by 2020, growing at a CAGR of 47 per cent. We hope that there is enough scope for everyone to grow. The new digital platform will offer customers an enhanced buying experience that combines speed and convenience of e-commerce transactions with the trust and reliability associated with the Mahindra Group.”
Without divulging the financial details of the venture, Parthasarathy said the company is open to receiving private equity investments in the near future and would not just depend on the Group for funds.
In hiring mode He further added that the company has started recruiting young talent from other e-commerce companies. At present, there are 10 employees.
M2ALL also offers the group companies and external sellers’ e-commerce technology, including online catalogue management services, integration with payment gateways, back-end integration, and support services such as digital marketing, data analytics, logistics and call centre services.