UAE-based Phygicart plans Indian expansion with Rs 100-cr investment

Banking on its successful stint in the Gulf countries, Dubai-headquartered e-commerce and direct marketing firm Phygicart.com is foraying into India with an initial ?100-crore investment. Phygicart, which follows a hybrid method of combining digital and physical marketing, will flag off its India operations from Kochi on July 8.

Phygicart was started by entrepreneurs Anish K. Joy and Jolly Antony in 2016 from Dubai, and the firm now has more than 20,000 partner stores across all the seven Emirates. In India, the firm is being promoted by Kerala-based jeweller Boby Chemmanur.

“The investment would be used to make our own products for which we are planning to set up an assembling unit in Ahmedabad, build our brand and enter into tie-ups with other brands. We are also in various stages of discussions to takeover certain other brands,” Joy, who is also Phygicart’s Chief Operating Officer, told BusinessLine.

“Our model enables an individual to become a consumer and also a partner simultaneously, while we would be also sharing the profits with our partners. The initiative is also to provide an opportunity to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) who come up with innovative products,” Joy added.

The  Rs 100 crore would be invested by Boby Chemmanur, Chairman and Managing Director of diversified  Rs 4,000-crore Boby Chemmanur International group. The group runs 44 jewellery showrooms globally under its flagship brand Boby Chemmannur International Jewellers.

The India foray is a part of Phygicart’s plans to expand operational footprint across 7 countries by 2022, including the US and Nepal, and to rake in $1 billion in turnover.

“The major drawback of e-commerce business is that it cannot establish a direct personal rapport with customers. We have rectified this,” Boby Chemmanur said, adding that Phygicart.com will distribute about 60 per cent of its total profits to partner store owners who join by logging in (without a financial commitment).

Phygicart is a marketplace that connects both e-commerce and direct marketing on a single platform. A customer starts his relationship with the company by logging onto the firm’s website and ordering its products. The company’s more than 5,000 products range from electronics to cosmetics, food to wellness and dress materials among others.