INTRODUCTION

As Getit Infoservices entered the digital sphere in the mid-1980s, its establishment as a yellow-page business directory service provider marked the start of a journey focused on aggregating and presenting information about local and small businesses across India. This service is intended to simplify the connection between companies and potential customers by offering a thorough directory.

By the time 2010 arrived, Getit had effectively grown to provide services in over 50 cities around India. The company’s next strategic step, the acquisition of AskMe between 2010 and 2012, was made possible by this expansion. This acquisition was a turning point that prepared the corporation to enter the rapidly developing arena of online commerce.

The business launched Askmebazaar, its web platform, in June 2014. AskMe Bazaar had a unique edge over more established rivals like Flipkart and Snapdeal, even though it entered the Indian e-commerce sector later. AskMe Bazaar was able to access a multitude of listings that were not yet available on other online marketplaces thanks to Getit’s vast database of small and local businesses that it acquired over the years. Due to this unique offering, the platform was able to quickly become important and draw in consumers looking for a variety of local city-based goods and services.

To further enhance user engagement and accessibility, the company concurrently launched an Android app. This action showed a dedication to giving customers a simple and convenient buying experience in addition to being in line with the growing trend of mobile-centric interactions.

WHAT AskMe DID?

AskMe’s unique selling proposition (USP) was straightforward: capitalize on the wealth of local listings of small-scale sellers in smaller towns amassed by Getit over previous decades. This involved transitioning these local sellers into the online sphere and introducing a Next Day Delivery (NDD) offering, a concept experimented with over an 18-month period.

While major metropolitan areas like Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru constituted their primary revenue streams, AskMe successfully extended its reach to tier-2 cities such as Kanpur, Kota, and Banaras.

The introduction of AskMeBazaar’s horizontal business model prompted the company to diversify into vertical business as well. This strategic move included investments in Mebelkart, a furniture marketplace, acquisitions of BestAtLowest (an online grocery marketplace), AskMePay (payment division), and AskMeGroceries (groceries division).

However, in hindsight, the rapid pace of acquisitions and expansion proved to be the very reason behind AskMe’s downfall.

One noteworthy aspect of AskMe was its surprising composition of top management, which, despite being an e-commerce company, consisted exclusively of individuals from marketing and sales backgrounds. This lack of technical expertise and leadership insights proved to be a limiting factor. As per a key management personnel, the company used to record and track orders through MS Excel, highlighting a potential gap in technological adaptation and operational efficiency.

Expansions

1. AskMe – Local Search Platform
2. AskMeBazaar – Marketplace for small and medium businesses
3. AskMeFurniture – Furniture marketplace formed by acquiring Mebelkart.com for $20 Million
4. AskMeGrocery – Online grocery delivery platform formed by acquiring BestAtLowest for $10 Million
5. AskMePay – Self-made payments platforms
6. AskMeFin – Self-made FinTech platform for businesses to get loans, and other business-oriented services.

Downfall of AskMe

As a new name in the Indian market, the company failed to clearly express the work that it did, leaving its audiences confused. This was even though stars like Farhan Akhtar and Ranbir Kapoor acted as their brand ambassadors and appeared in their advertisements.

It turns out that not just the audiences were confused. While the management was thriving, so was their inability to oversee every branch of the company.

“Jack of all trades, master of none…”

The company’s incessant acquisitions and investments resulted in a dangerous depletion of cash resources. This pushed Astro Holdings, their largest lone investor, to break their pattern of continuous investing. Given that the corporation was already suffering significant losses, this led to a capital deficit. This series of events cast a shadow over the top-level executives. During an interview with Business Times, AskMe’s Chief Marketing Officer was questioned about their seven months of consecutive losses and declining sales. Rather than directly addressing the challenging situation, he suggested that their anticipation rested on securing substantial funding from the Chinese conglomerate, Alibaba Group. It’s worth noting that this expectation did not materialize.

Staging Of Bills

As Askme faced an escalating cash burn rate due to increasing losses and declining sales, the company encountered difficulties in fulfilling payments to numerous online sellers who had already completed transactions but were awaiting compensation.

The erosion of trust and confidence among sellers led to a significant decline in order requests on the site, with many opting not to list their products on the online portal altogether. Compounded by mismanagement and a lack of corporate governance, AskMe struggled to meet its payroll obligations, resulting in delayed employee salaries. According to a former employee interviewed by YourStory, salary payments were overdue in the final months, and in August, many employees received no salary at all. On August 9th, 2016, AskMe instructed its employees to directly reach out to Astro Holdings for their salary concerns, providing the contact details of Astro Holdings management to each unpaid employee. This approach was criticized as falling short of proper corporate etiquette.

Faced with mounting challenges, Askmebazaar.com opted to cease taking orders altogether as of August 2016. The company ultimately became defunct, leaving thousands of employees jobless and sellers unpaid.

Competitors

AskMeBazaar has a total of 1717 competitors and it ranks 75th among them.

Top Competitors-

Flipkart – Bengaluru-based, 2007 founded, Acquired Company.

Amazon – Seattle-based, 1994-founded, Public Company.

Meesho – Bengaluru based, 2015 founded, Series F Company.

Lessons

1. Defining your specific market focus.

Determining the extent of your business is just as important as knowing the basic effects that your goods or services have on customers. Making strategic decisions and managing effectively depend on this understanding. 

The management was completely bewildered and unable to decide which course of action to take. Expansion that occurs too soon or too widely can always lead to problems. AskMe Bazaar negotiated rough waters with risky tactics in just two years on the market, likened to sailing on weak wooden boats amid high waves. Their solutions for logistics proved difficult to generalize, and the process took 18 months. This delay proved to be a risky move, especially in light of the strong competition from major players like Flipkart and Snapdeal.

The inadequate staffing level is a substantial risk for any enterprise. Overseeing AskMe’s many departments required a degree of expertise that was beyond the current management’s reach. This same management found it difficult to meet the needs of the situation as it faced confusion and chaos brought on by unclear targets and markets. The concentration of control became a source of business complications. With over 95% of stocks owned by Astro Holdings, controlled by the Malaysian billionaire T. Ananda Krishnan, decisions were extremely unilateral, restricting the management’s ability to make independent decisions.

Emphasizing the importance of profitability, the downfall of AskMe Bazaar was foreseeable. The company operated in substantial losses with a decline in sales, as illustrated by the clear trend in their financial charts.

2. Managing Expenses Without Burning Cash

AskMe almost doubled its revenue in a year, going from Rs 26.7 crores in March 2013 to Rs 47.8 crores in March 2014. But, increasing revenues does not mean increased profits. Orders had decreased by 90% by 2016, and there was no chance of a recovery following the significant financial losses.

Social media Accounts

1. Official website – AskMeBazaar
2. LinkeDin – (34) AskmeBazaar: Overview | LinkedIn
3. Instagram –https://www.instagram.com/askmebazaar?igsh=ZGloMW13bGF3Z2Fr
4. Facebook – AskmeBazaar.com | Noida | Facebook

References

Articles

1. “Askme Bazaar (Closed) Case Study – Askme Disaster in India”, lapaasindia, September 17, 2019.
2. Athira Nair, “FROM YELLOW PAGES TO ONLINE MARKETPLACE FOR SMES, THE STRONG AND SILENT RISE OF ASKMEBAZAAR”, YOURSTORY, April 06, 2016.
3. Pritesh Pawar, “AskMe Bazaar Case Study | The $300 Million Failure Story”, Pritesh Pawar.
4. Athira Nair, “ASKME SHUTS DOWN, 4,000 JOBS LOST”, YOURSTORY, August 20, 2016.

Links  

1.  https://www.gmacanimation.com/assest/images/alumini/placed2.jpg  
2. https://th.bing.com/th/id/OIP.cJrVoOkwccvVu0P1Bz97hwHaEK?w=730&h=410&rs=1&pid=ImgDetMain
3. https://i.pinimg.com/originals/38/3f/a0/383fa0ae285f6667c5ef8d4ec414d42c.jpg
4. https://www.businesstoday.in/magazine/corporate/story/askme-has-courted-trouble-by-spreading-itself-too-fast-62647-2016-05-27
5. AskMeBazaar
6. (34) AskmeBazaar: Overview | LinkedIn
7. https://www.instagram.com/askmebazaar?igsh=ZGloMW13bGF3Z2Fr
8. AskmeBazaar.com | Noida | Facebook
9. AskMeBazaar – Company Profile – Tracxn