Flipkart launches Flipkart Xtra', aims to create over 4,000 jobs this festive season

New Delhi: Walmart-owned Flipkart on Wednesday said it is introducing a separate marketplace model 'Flipkart Xtra' to offer flexible earning opportunities to individuals, service agencies and technicians.

Through the 'Flipkart Xtra' app on Google Play Store, Flipkart will provide a simple and seamless onboarding experience to interested individuals.

After background verification, individuals will be able to onboard themselves for various roles, including delivery executives to start with, and service partners or technicians in the coming months, a statement said. The new platform will help bolster Flipkart's supply chain to ensure seamless and faster delivery of shipments and service to consumers across India while creating part-time opportunities for individuals, it added.

The launch, which comes ahead of the festive season and the company's Big Billion Days, will help thousands of individuals, technicians, and service agencies across the country providing access to opportunities for additional work and earnings as delivery partners, the statement said. Flipkart aims to onboard 4,000 part-time associates via Flipkart Xtra for the entire festive season leading until December 2021, it added.

As an organisation committed to creating value for all stakeholders including sellers, artisans, MSMEs, Kiranas, and customers, we are constantly expanding the scope of our partnership to equitably distribute the benefits of e-commerce...we are pleased to launch Flipkart Xtra, our service marketplace, to give flexible earning opportunities to individuals, local stores and even service technicians," Flipkart Senior Vice-President and Head of Supply Chain Hemant Badri said.

This is a new disruption in the gig economy space and will help individuals find an alternate source of income while contributing to the country's economic recovery, he added.

Reports from BCG suggest that the gig economy has the potential to service up to 90 million jobs in India's non-farm economy alone, transact over $250 billion in the volume of work, and contribute an incremental 1.25 per cent to India's GDP over the long term.

In a separate statement, Flipkart group firm Myntra said it is expanding its 'Kirana network' to 25,000 stores and is hiring 11,000 people for last-mile delivery and customer support ahead of the festive season.

The fashion e-commerce platform said it is gearing up for the upcoming festive period and its 'Big Fashion Festival' by scaling up recruitment of its on-ground staff.