Social commerce platform announced its integration with the government’s Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) to help connect buyers with hyperlocal sellers.
Supporting India’s vision of creating an inclusive ecommerce ecosystem, this integration is expected to help in product discoverability while creating a wider market for hyperlocal suppliers. The pilot will first be launched in Bengaluru and gradually rolled out in other locations over the coming months.
Speaking on the development, Vidit Aatrey, Founder and CEO, Meesho, said,
“With a shared goal to empower small sellers and give a fillip to hyperlocal businesses, the integration will boost our efforts to democratise internet commerce for everyone. ONDC will also play an important role in expanding India’s ecommerce sector by bringing more consumers online.
We have been working closely with ONDC to ensure that the integration is smooth and the user experience remains seamless.”
(L-R): Sanjeev Barnwal and Vidit Aatrey, Co-founders, Meesho
With 80% of Meesho’s 14 crore annual transacting customers coming from Tier II+ cities, the company has been instrumental in boosting access for underserved users across the country. The startup claims that more than eight lakh sellers are currently registered on the platform, of which ~40% are from Tier II cities and beyond.
T Koshy, Chief Executive Officer at Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) commented,
“At ONDC, our aim is to create an open ecommerce ecosystem that caters to one and all. We are pleased to onboard Meesho as its deep capabilities in small towns will set the network flywheel in motion and take ONDC closer to our goals. Ecommerce is still small in India and new-age platforms like Meesho will be strong network participants for ONDC in this journey.”
