Traders, Online Sellers Demand Ecomm Brands' Boycott

Indian Sellers Collective, a non-governmental trade association committed to bringing to the fore the voices of micro and small enterprises and family businesses across India carried out protests and burned effigies, as part of the nationwide campaign ‘Bharat Chhodo Morcha’, to demand a boycott of MNC e-commerce brands.

The campaign also involved a national conclave and on-ground protests in states like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana to urge the government and consumers to shun MNC e-commerce brands and embrace swadeshi sellers’ products to bring relief to small traders this festive
season. 

ISC said that MNC e-commerce players track best-selling products on their platforms and then copy their design to launch private brands with similar features and at a competitive price.

Moreover, the trade association said, they run a systematic campaign to manipulate search results to divert sales of the bestselling products on its platform to its own product lines. As a result, no seller grows by doing business with the MNC e-commerce platforms. 

Ashwani Mahajan, National Co-Convener of Swadeshi Jagaran Manch stated, “MNC foreign e-commerce companies are indulging in illegal business practices in India. These firms are blatantly flouting rules through front companies like Appario Retail that indulge in predatory pricing and discounting thereby destroying the business of offline retailers and small sellers. MNC e-commerce platforms are also manipulating the algorithm to promote their own private labels and brands such as Amazon Basics, Symbol, and Solimo at the cost of Indian sellers besides influencing the Indian judicial system to twist laws through questionable practices to suit the company’s business interests.”

Abhay Raj Mishra, Member & National Coordinator, ISC, opined, “Foreign eCommerce retailers have taken away the shine of Dhanteras for small and micro retailers from the last so many years. There have been so many attempts for these brands to practice unethical business in the country and break the backbone for the small Indian sellers. ISC, with its nationwide campaign, attempts to wake up consumers and the government to shun products of foreign eCommerce companies and embrace products of Indian origin.”