Askmebazaar to enter fashion, travel spaces in 2016

Home and lifestyle online marketplace Askmebazaar is planning to enter fast-fashion and travel verticals next year. “We are keenly watching search queries and transactions in the entire ecosystem, and the fastest growing categories are fashion and travel,” Group Chief Marketing Officer, Askme.com, Manav Sethi said. The Gurgaon-based Askme.com - flagship product from Getit Infomedia - and Askmebazaar.com work hand-in-hand as a listing-cum-transaction ecosystem, he said. 

“We will invest in pockets of excellence where merchants can come and sell, and we might look at acquisitions going forward,” he added. The basic listing on Askme.com is free and it claims to have 15,000 paid advertisers who pay Rs 6,000-25,000 annually for premium listings. Askmebazaar helps offline merchants set up online storefronts and lists their products. 

“We have about 7 lakh stock keeping units (SKUs) listed on our site, excluding books and movies,” Sethi said. To sharpen its transaction business, the company uses consumer insights through data analytics based on the searches on Askme.com, and other sites, he added. “We at present do our data analytics in-house but are looking to buy start-ups in <g data-gr-id="16">the space,”</g> he said.