Every media opportunity will be a transaction: Atique Kazi on the future of e-retail

New Delhi: India's online retail market is set to explode in the next few years, with digital commerce poised to influence 10-11% of all retail spending, according to Atique Kazi, President - Data, Performance, and Digital Products at GroupM.

"India already has the third-largest online shopper base in the world," Kazi noted. "We estimate that in the next three years, the total online retail GMP will cross around 167,000 crore."

Speaking at the GroupM TYNY report launch, Kazi shared his take on the significant shifts when it comes to e-commerce in 2025.

This projected growth represents a significant leap for the Indian e-commerce sector, fuelled by increasing internet penetration, smartphone adoption, and evolving consumer behaviour. 

This surge in online retail is also driving a significant shift in advertising spending, with retail media emerging as the fastest-growing channel. "We are seeing a significant shift of brand advertising money into retail media," Kazi explained. "In 2024, retail media constituted approximately 22% of the overall digital advertising expense."

This highlights the increasing importance of retail platforms like Amazon and Flipkart not just as marketplaces but also as powerful advertising channels.

Moreover, according to an MMA India report, retail media has grown rapidly, reaching $30 billion in just five years, compared to 14 years for traditional media and 11 years for social media.

Retail media now covers the entire marketing process, including creating awareness, engaging customers, and driving sales.

Moving forward, Kazi also mentioned the increasing need for client teams, including integrated marketing teams and brand teams, to work more closely with customer teams and distribution teams. This collaboration is essential to effectively bring in the right level of synergies.

Diving deeper into the session, Kazi mentioned some of the upcoming trends, such as research online and purchase offline (ROPO) and the reverse trend of research offline and purchase online. Also, there is the blooming trend of buying online pickup in-store trends (BOPIS).

Further sharing his thoughts, Kazi said, “In the e-commerce space, we are seeing many new challenger brands entering the market, giving existing brands a run for their money. This has forced marketers to be more agile and nimble-footed, sometimes even outplaying the new brands at their own game. Large companies have been building online exclusives or launching new products digitally, adapting quickly and meeting the challenges posed by these new brands. If they can't outperform them, they may end up acquiring them.”

However, Kazi emphasised that success in this rapidly evolving landscape requires more than just financial investment. "Brands can't win in e-commerce without AI," he declared. "It is humanly impossible."

He explained that managing the complexities of multiple online marketplaces, each with its own data ecosystem, necessitates the use of AI-powered tools. "Clients using technology and automation are thriving," Kazi said. "AI provides 24/7 access to shelf dynamics, pricing, product availability, share of search, and share of shelf for both the brand and its competition."

Looking ahead, Kazi predicted an even greater convergence of media and commerce. "In five years, every media opportunity will also be an opportunity for transactions," he stated. "The integration of AI and technology in e-commerce is essential for success, allowing brands to stay competitive and agile in a constantly evolving market."

Finally addressing the elephant in the room—quick commerce, Kazi said, “One word that describes quick commerce is ‘crazy.’ Let me assure you that a large part of our communication with clients revolves around quick commerce. Today platform data shows that at least 50% of traffic comes from a full-funnel approach, including pop-ups, interstitials, catalogue browsing, post-purchase ad units, and suggestions like ‘Would you like to add.’ 

This exploratory behaviour is something marketers are tapping into to bring the funnels together. Additionally, quick commerce is expanding beyond the basics. We believe that health, pharma, and personal care will be the next huge categories driving consumption in commerce.”

Highlighting the importance of timing in q-commerce, Kazi said, “The biggest strategy is smart timing, which means you can choose to be active at specific times of the day or week. For example, if you're selling breakfast or physical products, you can choose the morning hours. If you're in the space of desserts or chocolate, you can target specific times suited for such products. Similarly, for snacks and mixers, weekends are a prime time for brands. Additionally, brands are seizing the opportunity to focus on regional and micro-segmentation, maximising their reach and effectiveness.”