Myntra to shut website from May 1; available only as mobile app: Report

Update: Myntra will shut its website from May 1 to become a mobile app-based retailer, a source related to the matter told The Times of India. Fashion retail website Myntra is expected to shut down its website in favour of moving all operations to its mobile app, according to a report in The Times of India. Myntra was acquired by Flipkart  last year for a sum of Rs 2,000 crores. The report states that Myntra pulls in about 80% of its traffic and 60% of sales through its mobile application. It has plans to take the sales number to 90% by the end of the year. When that happens, the fashion e-tailer will most likely shut down its websites according to sources familiar with the matter. If it does indeed happen, it will be the first instance of an online e-tailer going mobile-only from web + mobile format. According to Mukesh Bansal, co-founder of Myntra and CMO of Flipkart, the growth on the mobile platform has been rapid because fashion shopping is quite impulsive. Myntra is focussed on the mobile platform and will be making major investments on this platform going forward. Myntra is on course to complete Rs 2,000 crore in sales or gross merchandise value (GMV) for the current financial year. GMV refers to the overall revenue generated by online retailers through sale of goods on the online platforms. Out of the total GMV, the e-tailer makes around 5% to 20% depending on the category. In the fashion category Flipkart/Myntra’s biggest rivals remain Amazon and Snapdeal. Amazon recently started the fashion category in India, whereas Snapdeal too is on course for a $1 billion in sales under the fashion category. After electronics, fashion is the category which makes the most moolah. It accounts for nearly 30% of the GMV according to a report from Morgan Stanley.