Snapdeal’s Shopo shuts down! Did the ecommerce industry get the best of it?

“The e-commerce market in India will continue its robust growth. However, we realise that it will take some more years for a broader ecosystem to develop around the C2C segment. It is tempting to go on, but it is often beneficial to pause, take stock and plan ahead for greater success. It is time for us to pause the Shopo journey for now.”

Shopo posted on its blog on at the start of the month its app and web storefront will stop working by the 10th of February 2017.

What compelled the Shop?

Anurag Singh co-founder of markt.ooo, an online storefront, follows news about his competitors closely.

When asked if the etailer was facing any issues like payment problems, he said, “As far as I know they would not have had payment releasing problems because they were a consumer to consumer marketplace. They would have chosen to shut down perhaps because the service did not pick up and transactions were not sufficient.”

An online seller we spoke with (name withheld on request) mentioned that the etailer has specified that in its email to sellers, Shopo explains why it plans on closing down.

The seller stated, “There are no concerns of payment (issues) since it was a direct marketplace and was charging zero commission.”

Another online seller mentioned, “Sellers on Shopo.in received a message that they are shutting down operations leaving over a lakh sellers high and dry. No reason was given for the shutdown leaving sellers and customers frustrated.”

Shopo mentioned that while it will not be allowing trade via its app and web storefront, its support service will continue to remain active to provide help and make the transition as smooth as possible for its partners.

Shopo’s journey

In its post Shop said, “We started, a year and a half ago, from a small conference room with our mission to enable small and individual sellers across India to sell online. In this short time, we have together discovered the dynamism and vibrance in the C2C space in India. We thank you for your support and feedback that enabled our young team to help more than 2 lakh sellers start and grow their online shops.”

Snapdeal acquired Shopo in 2013 and in 2015, Snapdeal re-launched it as a mobile marketplace. Shopo enabled quick smart selling with minimal requirements. It secured 2 lakh sellers by July last year in just a few months. The platform charged zero commissions but had planned to make money through advertising.

Now, the etailer claims it will move on to solve new problems and thanks its sellers for the journey thus far.

But what are those abandoned by the marketplace going to do? Have you been affected by Shopo’s exist from the ecommerce market? Tell us your story in the comments below. We’d like to hear what your plan B is.