Citibank has ambitious plans for a Cyber Monday event in India
This year’s Cyber Monday in t
he U.S. broke sales records of previous years largely due to the showing of mobile commerce. Consumers throughout the country took advantage of aggressive deals from retailers on a wide range of products, making Cyber Monday one of the most successful shopping days the retail industry has ever seen. India may soon get its own version of Cyber Monday, which is being pushed heavily by Citibank.
US shopping season serves as inspiration for new venture
Citibank has ambitious plans to institute Cyber Monday in India in order to take advantage of the growing number of consumers that are intensely interested in electronics. The financial services group aims to promote mobile commerce among these consumers by giving them a way to purchase products from their mobile device rather than use a computer. Cyber Monday has, since 2005 when the day was minted by the retail industry, been responsible for billions of dollar worth of sales for retailers and Citibank believes that the time is right for the shopping phenomenon to come to India.
Savings available to Citibank customers only
If Citibank can successfully bring Cyber Monday to India, only Citibank customers will be able to take advantage of discounts that retailers participating in the event offer. Citibank expects that 17 of India’s most popular e-commerce and shopping platforms will offer discounts on products as high as 60%. Currently, the shopping event is scheduled to take place on December 5 and will be India’s first ever “Cyber Sunday.”
India may be able to see success through Cyber Monday initiative
Though any Citibank customer will be able to access the deals offered to them through a wide range of platforms, Citibank is hoping to engage mobile consumers in a powerful way. Mobile commerce is one the rise in India, especially as communities become more affluent because of the rapidly growing economy. In the U.S., mobile consumers accounting for a huge portion of the sales made on Cyber Monday. Citibank is keen to see similar results mimicked in India.
CorFire to open new office in London
CorFire, the U.S.-based m
obile commerce arm of SK C&C USA, has opened a new office in London, England, this week. The moves comes as the company looks to secure a stronger foothold in the European mobile commerce sector. More European countries are showing high levels of interest in mobile commerce and CorFire is eager to take advantage of that by showing a strong presence in the market. CorFire is backed by its parent company’s extensive experience in equipping merchants and consumers with mobile transaction capabilities and is expected to establish a powerful presence in the market with relative ease.
Mobile commerce gains momentum on heels of Thanksgiving weekend
Mobile commerce has received a swell of momentum on the heels of the Thanksgiving holiday shopping weekend in the U.S. Over the Thanksgiving weekend, consumers throughout the country made purchase using their mobile device, providing that mobile commerce was more than just a simple fad. Indeed, mobile commerce helped influence billions of dollars worth of sales during the Thanksgiving weekend, a fact that the retail industry has taken intense interest in. With mobile commerce beginning to receive much more support, the time may be right for companies like CorFire to begin expanding.
CorFire offers services to wide range of consumers
CorFire offers mobile commerce services to consumers on both iOS and Android platforms. Consumers can use the platform to make purchases for products they find online or in physical stores. CorFire can also be used to make payments for basic services, such as public transportation, which is a popular use of mobile commerce platforms in South Korea. CorFire predicts that mobile commerce is poised for major growth in the European market and is working to position itself to take advantage of that growth.
CorFire may compete with Google and other large players
As more European consumers get their hands on smart phones and tablets, the demand for mobile commerce services is rising. Companies like CorFire are eager to meet this demand, but will have to compete with giants like Google who have invested heavily in the mobile commerce space. CorFire has shown that it can provide consumers with convenient services, but only time will tell if it will succeed in establishing a strong foothold in the European market.