LIVE TV
ZEE Business
ZEE BUSINESS
हिंदी में पढ़ें  हिंदी में पढ़ें
Live TV
Live TV
  • Home
  • Personal Finance
    • PPF
    • Mutual Funds
    • Income tax
    • EPFO
    • Income Tax Calculator
    • Personal Loan Calculator
    • Car Loan Calculator
    • Home Loan Calculator
    • SIP calculator
    • SWP Calculator
    • MF Returns Calculator
    • Lumpsum Calculator
  • India
    • Companies
    • Property
    • Startups
    • Uidai
  • Economy
    • Aviation
  • Tech
    • Mobiles
    • Apps
  • Auto
    • Cars
    • Bikes
  • Markets
    • Commodities
    • Currency
  • Jobs
  • Indian Railways
  • World
    • Economy
    • Politics
    • Markets
  • videos
  • photos
  • Authors
  • More ...
    • VIDEOS
    • PHOTOS
Read in App
Business News » Small Business News

Under pressure, Snapdeal woos staff with promises of profit

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Linkedin
  • whatapp
  • View in App
Under pressure, Snapdeal woos staff with promises of profit
An employee is seen at the front desk of Snapdeal headquarters in Gurugram. Photo: Reuters
Written By: Reuters
Updated: Tue, Apr 04, 2017
04:47 pm
Mumbai/New Delhi, Reuters
RELATED NEWS
Online shopping just got a fancy new payment system for these shoppers; forget net banking, cash | Paytm, WhatsApp pay, Google Pay, PhonePe enabled Online shopping just got a fancy new payment system for these shoppers; forget net banking, cash | Paytm, WhatsApp pay, Google Pay, PhonePe enabled
Small towns perform big! Nearly 70 pct orders in Snapdeal sale received by sellers located beyond top 5 metropolitan areas Small towns perform big! Nearly 70 pct orders in Snapdeal sale received by sellers located beyond top 5 metropolitan areas
Online shopping tips and tricks: 5 ways to make best use of festive season sales Online shopping tips and tricks: 5 ways to make best use of festive season sales
Snapdeal announces special e-store for Navratri with several deals and discounts  Snapdeal announces special e-store for Navratri with several deals and discounts
Snapdeal to kick off festive sale from Oct 16 Snapdeal to kick off festive sale from Oct 16

Seeking to calm employees rattled by reports of a cash crunch, the founders of Indian online retailer Snapdeal have gone directly to them with a string of townhall meetings in past weeks, according to sources, promising profit and brushing off takeover talk.

The sources, familiar with the group, declined to be named as the meetings were not public.

Like most e-commerce players in India, Snapdeal is burning cash to sustain discounts - and keep customers - in a cut-throat online market. But as the number three player, it also is under growing pressure from investors and its own employees to consider its bottom line, as well as market share.

One of the sources said there had been at least five townhalls in recent weeks, with founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal delivering motivational speeches.

"It was only profitability and profitability," one source said, describing answers to questions from employees whether the company was a takeover target.

India`s booming online retail sector is led by homegrown player Flipkart - now followed by Amazon, after the U.S. giant overtook Snapdeal`s sales volumes a year ago.

Thanks to its deep pockets, Amazon has been an increasingly prominent investor in India, compensating for its mistakes in China, where it has been all but squeezed out by aggressive local rivals with a better grasp of demand.

Snapdeal sought funding support in China, from Chinese funds and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, already an investor, sources with knowledge of the matter said.

It has so far come back empty handed.

Snapdeal expects to turn profitable in two years and is eyeing a market listing around the same time.

But the China setback, and a valuation that has dropped from a peak of $6.5 billion last year, has unsettled some staff.

Two employees and three people familiar with Snapdeal`s internal discussions said there were concerns over the group`s direction, as well as over contradictory messages from investors - some seeking profit, others growth - and, increasingly, over potential senior-level departures or cuts.

Headhunters like Sinosh Panicker, a partner at Hunt Partners, said some of his clients had witnessed a jump in applications from Snapdeal employees. 

Some employees cite concerns after the departure of 600 staff in February, laid off from Snapdeal, its logistics arm Vulcan Express and payments unit FreeCharge.

Snapdeal declined to comment on staff exits or sentiment, but said its annual appraisals were currently underway, and staff would be offered incentives. 

In a letter to employees late last month, co-founder and chief executive Bahl said that Snapdeal, in which Japan`s SoftBank is also an investor, was on the right path, despite differing views from some investors.

"Investors in our industry need to understand that driving indiscriminate growth at any cost doesn`t create long-term value," Bahl wrote in the letter.

A spokeswoman for SoftBank in India declined comment while other Snapdeal investors - Nexus Venture Partners and Kalaari Capital - did not respond to Reuters queries. Alibaba has not commented on Snapdeal.

Snapdeal clocked up losses of 29.6 billion rupees ($456.5 million) in the fiscal year to March 31, 2016. Flipkart`s wholesale unit and its online marketplace made a combined loss of 28.5 billion rupees in the same period.

Get Latest Business News, Stock Market Updates and Videos; Check your tax outgo through Income Tax Calculator and save money through our Personal Finance coverage. Check Business Breaking News Live on Zee Business Twitter and Facebook. Subscribe on YouTube.

TAGS:
SnapdealSnapdeal employeescash crunchFlipkartAmazonKunal BahlRohit Bansalsnapdeal profitabilitysnapdeal sales volumeAlibaba Group HoldingVulcan ExpressSoftbankFreechargeNexus Venture PartnersKalaari CapitalE-commerce
RELATED NEWS
Online shopping just got a fancy new payment system for these shoppers; forget net banking, cash | Paytm, WhatsApp pay, Google Pay, PhonePe enabled Online shopping just got a fancy new payment system for these shoppers; forget net banking, cash | Paytm, WhatsApp pay, Google Pay, PhonePe enabled
Small towns perform big! Nearly 70 pct orders in Snapdeal sale received by sellers located beyond top 5 metropolitan areas Small towns perform big! Nearly 70 pct orders in Snapdeal sale received by sellers located beyond top 5 metropolitan areas
Online shopping tips and tricks: 5 ways to make best use of festive season sales Online shopping tips and tricks: 5 ways to make best use of festive season sales
Snapdeal announces special e-store for Navratri with several deals and discounts  Snapdeal announces special e-store for Navratri with several deals and discounts
Snapdeal to kick off festive sale from Oct 16 Snapdeal to kick off festive sale from Oct 16

LATEST NEWS

Stocks to buy with Anil Singhvi: Here are Vikas Sethi’s top two picks today for good returns

Rakesh Jhunjhunwala offloads 2.25 mn shares of this company – check what expert has to say

Strong fundamentals, valuations make Indo Borax and Chemicals Sandeep Jain's favourite

PUBG Mobile Redeem Codes: Check rewards list, items, guide, new update and more - All details here

Telangana SSC Inter Exams News: Class 10 SSC exam CANCELLED, Class 12 inter exam POSTPONED in the state - check all details here

UPSC EPFO 2021: Admit card for the exam released at upsc.gov.in - check exam date and everything you need to know before appearing for the exam

Delhi curfew e-pass update: Apply for wedding e-pass on delhi.gov.in website, timings and more

Ashok Leyland delivers first of its kind, LBP vehicles to IAF in link-up with Lockheed Martin

Gold price today 16-0-2021: Rates to hover in the range of Rs 46,850-Rs 47,450, says Motilal Oswal

IMD monsoon 2021 outlook: Good news! Rains to be normal this year, says weatherman

  • India News
  • World News
  • Companies News
  • Market News
  • Personal Finance News
  • Technology News
  • Automobile News
  • Small Business News
  • Income Tax Calculator
  • Live TV
  • Videos
  • Photos
  • Author
  • Rss Feed
  • Advertise with us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Legal Disclaimer

Latest Trending Updates

  • EPFO
  • Budget 2020
  • Income Tax Return
  • Auto Expo 2020
  • Home Loan
  • Business News

Trending Topics

  • Income Tax
  • income Tax Calculator
  • 7th Pay Commission
  • Reserve Bank of India
  • GST
  • Latest Business News

Follow us on

zeebiz
zeebiz

Partner Sites

  • Zee News
  • Hindi News
  • Marathi News
  • Bengali News
  • Tamil News
  • Malayalam News
  • Gujarati News
  • Telugu News
  • Kannada News
  • DNA
  • WION
Copyright © Zee Media Corporation Ltd. All rights reserved