Delhi-based shopping portal Snapdeal acquired premium fashion site Exclusively.com on Wednesday.
The acquisition would help Snapdeal strengthen its fashion business and build on to its merchandise revenue in the fashion category to reach $2 billion this year. However, Snapdeal did not disclose the transaction details.
The fashion business contributes to over 60% of Snapdeal's total revenue, suggest estimates.
"Under this partnership, Exclusively will complement Snapdeal's existing ecosystem and will provide a consolidated offering for the luxury and lifestyle shopper, making it India's first online luxury mall," the company statement said.
The Indian market for luxury products and services stands at $14 billion and is growing at 30% annually, a recent KPMG-ASSOCHAM report said.
Snapdeal CEO Kunal Bahl disclosed that the company had witnessed a surge in demand for luxury products, while access to such products continues to be severely limited. Now, with the acquisition of Exclusively.com, the e-commerce major's four-crore strong users will have access to a wide range of aspirational, high-end products and services.
Currently, Exclusively.com carries stock from India's leading fashion designers and their business houses. Some of those listed include JJ Valaya, Manish Malhotra, Manish Arora, Tarun Tahiliani, Rohit Bal, Ritu Kumar and Neeta Lulla.
"With increased awareness and growing disposable incomes, premium and luxury consumption in India is seeing a significant upward trend. With the geographical limitations of the brick-and-mortar model, we strongly believe that the luxury and premium segments can only be grown by sharing access with the consumer," Sunjay Guleria and Mohini Boparai-Guleria, co-founders of Exclusively said.
