Flipkart India Pvt., owned by Walmart Inc., is significantly investing in livestreaming and social videos to win over India’s growing base of young, smartphone-savvy consumers. With a large percentage of Indian users spending hours daily on mobile apps, Flipkart is using this digital behavior to power its next growth phase in e-commerce.
According to Neha Agrahari, Senior Director at Flipkart, video commerce is one of the retailer’s core focus areas for 2025 as it tries to build deeper engagement with online buyers and create an immersive shopping experience.
Though video-led shopping has been used globally by platforms like Taobao and Shopee, Flipkart sees an opportunity to differentiate itself from competitors such as Amazon India and Reliance Retail by adopting this strategy more aggressively.
India, with over 650 million smartphone users and more than 270 million active online shoppers, has become the second-largest e-retail market globally, even ahead of the United States in user volume. Flipkart’s move is a strategic bet to capitalize on these figures by creating more personalized, interactive shopping journeys.
In the first half of 2025, Flipkart reported a massive surge in video engagement. Around 200 million users watched videos while shopping, up significantly from 75 million during the same period last year.
“Today’s shoppers, especially Gen-Z, prefer video content when making purchase decisions,” said Agrahari. She added that two out of three Gen-Z users are now turning to videos and livestreams to evaluate products. Interestingly, 65% of this engagement is coming from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, highlighting video commerce’s growing relevance outside of India’s major urban hubs.
To enhance transparency and buyer confidence, Flipkart has introduced livestreams on its app, allowing real-time Q&A between influencers and potential buyers. These live sessions help answer queries, demonstrate product use, and showcase performance, especially for items like sunscreen, beauty tools, electronics, and home appliances.
By offering a two-way interaction, livestreams replicate the feel of in-store shopping in a digital format—building trust and reducing product return rates.
Flipkart’s adoption of video commerce is inspired by success stories in China and Southeast Asia, where livestream selling has become mainstream. Platforms like Taobao Live in China have shown how influencers can boost conversions dramatically by demonstrating real-world product use.
Similarly, Indian platforms like Meesho, backed by SoftBank, have started investing in influencer-led video selling, further validating the model’s potential.
Currently, video-led commerce is driving Flipkart sales in the fashion, beauty, personal care, and home decor categories. Agrahari revealed that the company will next expand its video content to include electronics, fitness gear, and other high-value items.
This move will target broader consumer segments while maintaining video’s engaging format, which allows users to witness how a product performs in daily use.
To support its growing video ecosystem, Flipkart is constructing dedicated video production studios in Gurugram, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. These facilities are aimed at helping content creators shoot, edit, and publish high-quality videos efficiently, ensuring a seamless production pipeline.
This infrastructure investment underscores Flipkart’s long-term commitment to the video commerce format and its creators.
Flipkart has seen viral interest in product demonstration videos, including unique “stress tests” where t-shirts are dipped in water to test colorfastness, and kitchen appliances are used to prepare various dishes.
In some cases, Flipkart has even showcased mobile drop tests to prove a device's durability—content that resonates well with online viewers. According to Agrahari, daily livestream engagement is up 17x year-on-year, proving that consumers want proof over promises.