The Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) recently announced that it has crossed more than 5 lakh active trading businesses on the platform, with more than 70% of them being SMEs and MSMEs. As per the Commerce Ministry, the ONDC is now conducting over 7 million transactions.
There is an acute reason for this growth spurt of mid-sized businesses on the ONDC platform. As per the Joint Secretary of DPIIT (Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade), the presence of a large number of SMEs ensures that the ONDC ecosystem can provide greater consumer choice and drive innovations.
He also mentioned that another set of 125 SMEs has been added to the ONDC family.
Advantages of the ONDC for SMEs
ONDC has a digital footprint across 482 cities in India. So, any SME that signs up on the platform is immediately able to tap into a huge network of potential consumers. It also features over 90 different networking partners, thereby facilitating business across multiple domains.
The MSME industry is also actively working with the ONDC to integrate the MSME-mart, with its 2 lakh existing sellers onto the national platform. But it’s not just access to a larger market that the ONDC can provide for SMEs and MSMEs. As per a whitepaper established last year by Deloitte India, getting on board the ONDC can empower these businesses with better product designing and manufacturing capabilities.
So, while there are multiple online platforms that mid-sized businesses in India can choose to sell their products on, the benefits provided by ONDC far outweigh the rest.
The ONDC also needs the SMEs
A report published by Redseer Strategy Consultants in collaboration with Nandan Nilekani shows that by onboarding targeted mid-sized businesses, the ONDC can potentially generate up to $300 billion worth of Gross Merchandise Value. This is why the platform is now targeting SMEs and MSMEs across the country to come onboard their platform.
By providing targeted offerings such as the integration of the MSME-mart and also the ONDC academy that trains entrepreneurs to upscale their products, they are becoming the go-to option for mid-sized businesses looking to enter the digital arena.
Earlier this year the ONDC organized a ‘Startup Mahotsav’ aimed to encourage startups to join the platform and strengthen the nation’s startup ecosystem. So, the time is better than ever for SMEs and MSMEs to break into the digital markets with the support of a national platform that actively aims to support their efforts and build an ecosystem.
