Discounts & Price Drops
How Xiaomi and Realme plan to solve their ‘deep online discounts’ problem on Amazon, Flipkart and other websites
Now smartphone brands such as Xiaomi and Realme are reportedly cracking down against retailers looking to make a quick buck by selling devices cheaper on online platforms. According to a report in Economic Times, this comes as these companies bet big on the offline channel to boost growth.
After complaints from retailer associations, brands including Xiaomi and Realme are said to be repurchasing stocks selling at lower prices to trace back the retailer and distributor and penalise them. The report said that as of now these brands are letting retailers go with a warning, making them sign an undertaking that prohibits them from selling their products outside the authorised channels to avoid higher liquidation damage and loss of business.
There have reportedly been multiple instances of such undertakings signed by retailers in Jammu, West Bengal, Haryana and Tamil Nadu, among others.
AIMRA complaint letter to Xiaomi and Realme
The offline mobile retailers association has seen over a dozen products from brands such as Xiaomi, Realme and Samsung being sold at prices on online channels that are around Rs 1000-2000 lower than their minimum operating prices (MOP).
“This is a real alarming situation to hear that a brand has allowed the ecommerce platforms to register retailers online, majorly wholesalers, to sell their products just to gain shares but actually losing the ground and faith of the mainline retailers who have been putting hard efforts to sell product to the consumers with best of their abilities,” the retailer association said in a letter to Realme on March 26.
“A strenuous action backtracking the root cause of concern lies in the brand’s own control and should be taken up for the best continued constructive outcomes for the brand in the long term,” the letter added.
Similar letters have also been sent to Xiaomi, a copy of which ET has seen. In response, a Xiaomi representative promised action saying “These are the stocks being uploaded online by scalper retail partners after reducing all schemes. We are purchasing the stocks to find the source and fix it with heavy penalties.”
Contribution of sales from retail stores has outstripped that from online platforms
This comes at a time when the contribution of sales from retail stores has outstripped that from online platforms. IDC India estimated online platforms (Amazon and Flipkart) are now contributing 48% of the total sales in the January-February period, down from 49% in 2023 when shipments to online channels dropped 6% on-year.
Discounts & Price Drops
Mega discounts at South India Shopping Mall
Hyderabad: In celebration of the culturally significant Aashadam season, South India Shopping Mall has launched its much-awaited Blockbuster Kilo Sale, drawing massive footfall across its showrooms.
Rooted in the traditions of South India, the brand has rolled out an exciting campaign with the tagline “Shopping in Kilos… Happiness in Tons!”, offering customers an array of irresistible deals. One of the most talked-about highlights is the ‘Buy 1 KG Sarees, Get 1 KG Free’ offer on Kanchipattu sarees, which has struck a chord with festive shoppers.
In addition, the sale features up to 66% off on all categories of clothing, a second Kalamkari Pattu saree for just Rs 49 (worth Rs 4,995), exclusive deals on ladies, men’s, and kids’ wear, and unmatched offers on jewellery. Shoppers can also avail 2 grams of silver free per gram of gold jewellery, Rs 5,000 off per KG of silver items, and diamond jewellery starting from just 49,990 per carat, with VA beginning at only 5%.
Discounts & Price Drops
South India Shopping Mall offers mega Ashadam discounts
Sale features up to 66% off on all categories of clothing, exclusive deals on ladies, men’s, and kids’ wear, and offers on jewellery
Published Date – 18 July 2025, 12:53 AM
Hyderabad: In celebration of the culturally significant Ashadam season, South India Shopping Mall has launched its much-awaited Blockbuster Kilo Sale, drawing massive footfall across its showrooms.
Rooted in the traditions of South India, the brand has rolled out a campaign with the tagline ‘Shopping in Kilos… Happiness in Tons!’, offering customers an array of irresistible deals. One of the most talked-about highlights is the ‘Buy 1 KG Sarees, Get 1 KG Free’ offer on Kanchipattu sarees, which has struck a chord with festive shoppers.
The sale features up to 66% off on all categories of clothing, a second Kalamkari Pattu saree for just 49 (worth Rs 4,995), exclusive deals on ladies, men’s, and kids’ wear, and offers on jewellery. Shoppers can also avail 2 gm silver free per gram of gold jewellery, Rs 5,000 off per kg of silver items, and diamond jewellery starting from just Rs 49,990 per carat, with VA beginning at only 5%.
Discounts & Price Drops
EV sales in India set to cross 7 pc market share by FY28: Report

News Business
India’s festive season this year is set to generate over 2.16 lakh seasonal jobs, reflecting a 15–20 per cent year-on-year rise in gig and temporary employment during the second half of 2025, a report said on Wednesday.
Key sectors driving this surge include retail, e-commerce, BFSI, logistics, hospitality, travel, and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG).
Hiring activity has gained momentum in anticipation of marquee events such as Raksha Bandhan, Big Billion Days, Prime Day Sale, Dussehra, Diwali, and the wedding season, Adecco India, an HR service provider, said in its report.
Many companies are advancing their hiring cycles to stay ahead of demand and ensure operational readiness for what is expected to be a stronger-than-usual festive period.
As per the report, this year’s hiring uptick is being driven by improved consumer sentiment, a favourable monsoon boosting rural demand, post-election economic optimism, and aggressive seasonal promotions.
Metro cities such as Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Kolkata, and Pune continue to lead in seasonal hiring demand, up 19 per cent from last year.
At the same time, tier 2 cities like Lucknow, Jaipur, Coimbatore, Nagpur, Bhubaneswar, Mysuru and Varanasi are witnessing a 42 per cent increase in job demand. In addition, tier-2 cities like Kanpur, Kochi, and Vijayawada are emerging as new hiring hubs, the report noted.
Compensation levels are expected to rise as well. It may go up by 12-15 per cent in metro markets and by 18-22 per cent in emerging cities.
Encouragingly, 23 per cent more women are participating in this seasonal hiring wave compared to previous years, driven by a rising preference for flexible, short-term roles.
“This year’s festive season is seeing a sharper and more structured demand curve, and we have proactively prepared to meet it well in advance. Unlike previous years where hiring was largely volume-driven, employers today are equally focused on deployment speed, workforce readiness, and regional agility,” said Deepesh Gupta, Director and Head of General Staffing, Adecco India.
Hiring in logistics and delivery is projected to rise by 30–35 per cent as companies scale up last-mile operations in preparation for peak festive demand.
In the BFSI sector, firms are significantly ramping up field force deployments for credit card sales and POS installations, particularly across tier 2 and 3 cities.
The hospitality and travel segments are expected to see a 20-25 per cent increase in hiring, while e-commerce and retail will continue to dominate, accounting for 35-40 per cent of total seasonal job creation, said the report.
-
The Travel Revolution of Our Era3 weeks ago
‘AI is undeniably reshaping the core structure of the hospitality ecosystem’: Venu G Somineni
-
Brand Stories7 days ago
The Smart Way to Stay: How CheQin.AI Is Flipping Hotel Booking in Your Favor
-
Mergers & Acquisitions6 days ago
How Elon Musk’s rogue Grok chatbot became a cautionary AI tale
-
Mergers & Acquisitions1 week ago
Amazon weighs further investment in Anthropic to deepen AI alliance
-
Brand Stories2 weeks ago
Voice AI Startup ElevenLabs Plans to Add Hubs Around the World
-
Asia Travel Pulse2 weeks ago
Looking For Adventure In Asia? Here Are 7 Epic Destinations You Need To Experience At Least Once – Zee News
-
AI in Travel2 weeks ago
‘Will AI take my job?’ A trip to a Beijing fortune-telling bar to see what lies ahead | China
-
Mergers & Acquisitions1 week ago
UK crime agency arrests 4 people over cyber attacks on retailers
-
Mergers & Acquisitions2 weeks ago
ChatGPT — the last of the great romantics
-
Mergers & Acquisitions1 week ago
EU pushes ahead with AI code of practice