Festive e-sales hit ₹60,700 crore in first week
Most large platforms, including Flipkart and Amazon, kicked off sales on September 22, coinciding with the implementation of a GST rate cut on several consumer durables.
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India’s online festive sales completed their first week on a strong note, with consumer demand lifting both value and volumes across platforms. The gross merchandise value (GMV) touched about ₹60,700 crore in the first week, marking a 29 per cent year-on-year growth from 2024, according to a report by market intelligence firm Datum Intelligence. The report projects overall festive sales this year to rise 27 per cent and surpass ₹1.2 lakh crore, with more than half of that already logged in the opening week.
Complementing this, Unicommerce, an e-commerce enablement SaaS platform, reported a 21 per cent year-on-year increase in order volumes in the first week of festive sales, based on over 40 million transactions processed via its Uniware system. Together, these numbers point to the strongest start to festive e-commerce in recent years, underscoring both higher ticket sizes and sharper consumer appetite across categories.
“The first week is always front-loaded with big-ticket purchases. Categories such as smartphones, appliances, furniture and even lab-grown diamonds have driven much of the growth,” said Satish Meena, adviser at Datum Intelligence
Most large platforms, including Flipkart and Amazon, kicked off sales on September 22, coinciding with the implementation of a GST rate cut on several consumer durables. Datum’s data indicate that September 22 was the single-biggest sales day of the week, aided by early access for Amazon Prime and Flipkart Plus/Black members.
Category winners
Mobiles continued to dominate the GMV charts, contributing 42 per cent of total sales during the first week. However, growth in the category, at 27 per cent year-on-year, lagged the overall market’s 29 per cent expansion, according to data by Datum Intelligence.
Appliances surged 41 per cent, buoyed by refrigerators, dishwashers and inverter batteries, while consumer electronics grew 34 per cent on the back of premium TVs, laptops, and wearables. Homeware and furniture rose 29 per cent, supported by festive refurbishments.
“The average spend on September 22–23 was about ₹10,000 per order, compared with around ₹6,000 towards the end of the week. Shoppers tend to front-load large purchases and then shift to smaller, discovery-led buys as the season progresses,” Meena noted
On the volume side, Unicommerce pointed to FMCG — led by healthy foods — as a major growth driver, alongside beauty, wellness, and pharma categories that saw strong traction in nutraceuticals and supplements. Fashion, particularly apparel and jewellery, also registered healthy gains.
The most striking shift was in quick commerce, which logged over 85 per cent year-on-year growth in order volumes, according to Unicommerce. Datum also noted that grocery GMV rose 44 per cent, making it the fastest-growing category of the week.
“In the Navratri and Dussehra phase, quick commerce will trigger a wave of last-minute shopping for groceries, puja items and gifting,” Meena said. “Platforms are well-placed to capture these purchases as consumers expect deliveries within minutes, especially in metros,” he added.
With more than half of the season’s projected GMV already booked, analysts expect momentum to continue into October. Appliances, grocery, and quick commerce are tipped to remain the fastest-growing segments.
Meena pointed out that there would be another spike around October 2, followed by strong days through Navratri and Dussehra. He added that gold and silver coins, as well as kitchenware and appliances, would see another round of demand closer to Dhanteras.
Published on September 30, 2025
