Gone are the days when everything used to be done physically with the onset of pandemic the rules of business have changed.
The handicrafts sector is no different as it has come up with an interesting initiative of giving wings to dreams of handicraft artisans, manufacturers and exporters from India via Expobazaar.
An initiative of India Expo Mart, ExpoBazaar is a rare combination of technology, along with fully managed warehouse and fulfilment centres for curated Indian merchandise to target overseas markets.
The platform enables Indian businesses to market their products to ready-to-buy, verified independent retailers and small businesses across the globe.
B2B e-commerce has risen exponentially in India in the last few years and is expected to reach $1 Trillion by 2024.
ExpoBazaar has identified key markets around the globe and will be launching the e-marketplace for US market in the first phase, followed by India and the rest of the world in the next phase.
The digital platform, which hosts over 15 categories like Home Décor, Kitchen & Dining, Furniture, Jewellery and more, was ideated during the pandemic to enable India manufacturers and craftspeople to reach out to the world markets with minimum effort.
ExpoBazaar currently spans over 500+ sub categories and has already on-boarded over 100 seller partners to start their journey to international markets.
“We want to build a trusted and transparent community of buyers and sellers around the globe. The sellers on ExpoBazaar will get support in marketing and producing products as per the demand in international market and will help them in getting better prices, access to international markets and creating a brand for their products thereby creating a harmonious seller-buyer ecosystem,” said Rakesh Kumar, Chairman of India Expo Mart and Director General of Export Promotions Council for Handicrafts (EPCH).
ExpoBazaar has a dedicated team in place that identifies relevant products and collaborated with seller partners to create merchandise suited to respective foreign markets. “Our team of experts both in the US and India create merchandise that represents the best of India’s scale, diversity, rich heritage of skills, materials, trades and industries,” said Dileep Baid, Dileep Trading Corporation.
Keeping its pace with technology, ExpoBazaar also boasts of end-to-end supply chain solutions to boost delivery times and efficiency.
Their focus is on the Just-in-Time (JIT) model that allows their seller partners to stock their inventory in warehouses managed by ExpoBazaar and are shipped directly to the buyer upon order confirmation.
“The JIT model is the need of the hour as it eliminates overproduction and promotes zero defects, zero effects manufacturing. Our 3PL (Third Part Logistics) partner in the US is renowned in the country and together, we are rapidly progressing towards reduced inventory and overhead costs, shipping optimisation, better quality control, and most importantly, higher customer retention”, said Rakesh Kumar.
The handicraft industry has more than 10,000 exporters and 70 lakh artisans and the expobazaar is a unique opportunity where without going anywhere one gets access to quality, timely delivery, selling prices and payments as everything will be handled by Expobazaar,” said RK Malhotra, Chaiman, EPCH.