When it comes to online shopping, Mumbaikars have left behind all other cities in India, a survey released Sunday said.
The random study was conducted by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) between January and June in 10 cities.
Exactly 65% of Mumbai residents shop online. Interestingly, the rising fuel price is one of the primary reasons keeping them indoors.
While Ahmedabad ranked second , Delhiites ranked third in their preference for online shopping in the study, for which around 5,000 shoppers in the 16-35 age-group in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore, among other cities, were interviewed.
"As per the survey 45% of Delhiites prefer shopping online while 30% prefer to shop in traditional markets like Sarojini Nagar, Lajpat Nagar, Karol Bagh, Janpath, Paharganj, Sadar Bazar and Chandni Chowk," said the survey.
"Around 15% of respondents said they prefer to visit a mall for their shopping needs while 10% said they prefer shopping at specialty stores," the survey stated.
About 40% of those surveyed said that they preferred to shop online because of the convenience of shopping anytime, a variety of products to choose from, the availability of detailed information and the option to compare prices.
However, around 25% of the 'high-income' respondents preferred to shop at malls and upmarket shopping complexes. Around 20% preferred local markets because of the familiarity, ease of access and shop owners' relationship with loyal customers.
Facilities like free shipping, product ratings or reviews, multiple payment options, product demonstration videos and free return policy largely influence the purchasing decision of consumers shopping online, concluded the survey.
Those who are averse to online shopping cited various reasons like finding delivery costs too high (20%), researching products online but buying them from a store (30%), not wanting to share personal financial information online (25%), lacking trust for delivery of products in good condition (15%) and not having a credit or debit card (10%).
The ever-increasing penetration of the internet across the country has had a cascading effect on the online retail industry in India as it is set to be worth Rs7,000 crore by 2015.
According to DS Rawat, ASSOCHAM's secretary general, a booming economy and rising disposable incomes have contributed to the evolution of online shopping.
"India is set to become the third largest nation of internet users in the next two years with a large chunk of youngsters eager to adopt new technologies with rapidly changing lifestyles," he said.
