Brijesh Agrawal, Founder & CEO, Tolexo.com
What is the market size of the Indian B2B e-commerce industry and at what rate is it growing ?
As per a report by Walmart, India’s B2B e-commerce market opportunity is currently valued at $300 billion, which is expected to expand to $700 billion by 2020
What are the challenges faced by the b2b e-commerce service providers like Tolexo?
Online buying by businesses is not a common phenomenon. Hence, one of the first barriers that we face is adoption and trust. There is tremendous comfort and belief in traditional buying/ sourcing and that leads to skepticism. So we need to build trust, which is a function of performance, brand and time.
Supply chain is the another area of challenge. Suppliers of business goods are taking to online platforms for the first time, so their readiness of process and mindset to sell online and deliver goods is in early stages. The forward logistics network in India for business goods is in its infancy and hence that restricts reach, quick and error-free deliveries.
The other important area of focus for us is a facility to buy on credit. Business buyers have been buying on 30-60-90 day credit from suppliers offline. While online payments are either pre-paid or CoD, building up a credit product will aid smoother adoption by large number of businesses.
B2C e-commerce market in India is very mature, but B2B is still in a nascent stage. How do you plan to survive the conventional mind set?
We are picking up key solvable points upfront, which helps us get the early adopters on Tolexo. These include large product assortment, convenient online shopping experience (essentially through technology driven product development) and successful fulfillment of orders.
Over a period of time, as we solve additional problems like credit, we should be able to attract a larger number of customers by offering solutions to key issues that prevent them for coming online.
In many large companies there are rules like the purchase manager should have at least 3 quotations from various companies? Do you have any solution for the same?
Yes. We being a marketplace have multiple suppliers for products available on Tolexo.com who disclose prices upfront. The purchase manager just needs to decide who does he want to place an order with. It is very easy and hassle-free.
How many transaction Tolexo does in a day/ month?
For business reasons (competition), we cannot disclose the figures ar present. However, we have moved from zero traffic to more than 1.2 million visits every month and that will give you a good idea about our growth rate, which has been between 40-50% month on month.
What are the benefits of buying through Tolexo?
The biggest advantage is the sheer variety. Currently, there are 5 lakh products on Tolexo and this number is poised to touch 10 million by the end of the year.
The other big advantages are that of convenience, price transparency, flexible payment options and managed deliveries. Industrial supplies suffer from price opacity. Not only is pricing acting in favour of buyers, they also have the advantage that the delivery is being managed through Tolexo and not the sellers.
Which part of India do you see maximum orders?
We have seen great traction from across India. However, Tier 2 & 3 cities are contributing more than two-thirds of our orders. In terms of regions, South India scores over the rest.
How do you manage logistics? What should one keep in mind while dealing with heavy industrial products?
Business goods typically require a lot more compliance around taxation, forms and approvals. In addition, these goods are heavier and bulkier than the average consumer goods. So while we develop the supply chain, we have to find innovative ways of addressing these issues, which are uncommon for companies who have an expertise in B2C e-commerce deliveries.
Currently, we work with more than 8 logistics players like Bluedart, Delhivery etc. to ensure that we are able to provide service to more than 900 cities across India.
Various technologies and products are launched almost every day. How do you manage to keep yourself up-to-date?
While a lot of this learning may come through unstructured sources, we have a bunch of people who keep a track of such developments and help the entire team stay aware of the relevant ones. In addition, we do regular meetings with the sellers and buyers, who help us with market intelligence that is extremely relevant for Tolexo.
What are your future plans and where do you see Tolexo two years down the line?
Our key goal, why we exist, is to disrupt the way businesses buy and sell goods today. This century old way of trade can be made more efficient using technology and innovative product offerings that are possible in today’s world.
In terms of milestones, firstly, we would want to be the leaders in the space; second, capture 0.5-1.0% of the total market opportunity over the next few years. This space, which is nascent currently, will see a rapid J-curve like adoption within the next few years and we should be a direct beneficiary of that.
Living through a commercial revolution is big enough by itself; being in there and influencing it right at the start is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
