Feb 19, 2012 09:16 PM
12343 Views
We Love Cheap. I don't know if you love this bloke Russel Peters, but I do! And even before he said so, I firmly believed that we Indians love to get 'it' cheap, IT may be anything. After all, why the Fakhruddin Chisti should we pay more and make the seller richer and ourselves poorer, ya? So, if something that costs Rs 100, available at discount sales for Rs 80, is given to me at Rs 65, I say "Like". Facebook is getting my goat too, these days! But I like.. err, love it!
We Love Lines - On and Off. We have so many people in our Bharat that like it or not, lines have been a part of our lives since birth, at school bus stops, toilets, ration shops, and now at INOX! SO when onLINE came about, we were naturals at it. So much so, that we felt OFFline if our online connections went bad! So, when graduation to online buy/sell was launched, we jumped at it in full gusto, even if only by inspiration to claim 'me too' credit! Then we saw headlines of multiple online scams, bubble-bursts and the like, and we learnt to beware of anything online where money was involved. Cut to Para 1, did I already tell you we love everything without any monetary strings attached? :)
Enter Flipkart. It all started around with a few Flipkart advertisements, at times lost in the overall maze of others alongside. We refill our plates and glasses during Ad breaks, don't we?:) Then, a few words were passed around and people started looking at the website per se, for 'cheap' purchases. Books, CDs and minor decor items and home appliances were the preferred deals, where one wouldn't really 'lose', even if Flipkart did the unthinkable and disappeared! But slowly, volumes grew, as did genres and deals.
Why I Flip-Karted. I realized it was my father's birthday 4 days before the D-day, and it needs to be mentioned that Mumbai insists I stay here while my father insists he stays at North Kerala! I thought of flowers and cakes, but then, at 66, these aren't really the best, if you truly love the old man, you see:) So I wandered 'lonely as a cloud' and ended up on FK. To cut it short, I ended up buying the Meluha series of books, 2 instrumental music CDs and some more. My net savings on an average was 35%. Then they asked if I wanted it gift-wrapped! I flipped! Said "Yes, I do", for the second time; the first having been to get myself the wife! Then I noted that the delivery period was cutting it fine, but then, FK wasn't closed to me a few days back! But my honour, faith, skin and much more (money included) were saved when the two separate packages were delivered by Aramex Courier at Kannur right on time! The big "Thank You" from my otherwise-inexpressive father made my day, and I did the FLIPKART-wheel, in sheer delight!
Doing IT Again. A week ago, we were planning our mid-year vacation to Leh & Sikkim, and my wife had this cash-burst idea to invest in a Lonely Planet guide on.. hold it.. India! I saw the MRP, Rs 1737, and mentally added it to the cost of the tickets, stay and food to come, in a few months! I checked around on Amazon and more, and saw 'great deals' for Rs 1500. Then I remembered good old Flipkart. Delight again knew no bounds when I saw the listed price as Rs 1140, and the 'cheapness quotient' in me flooded, crested and foamed (no pun intended!). A few clicks later, we were waiting for the book to arrive, in the published delivery period of 4-5 days. The 3rd day, my smiling wife called up to say FK had delivered the book. What was even more appealing is that the courier was their own (complete with Flipkart uniform, logo et al!); that was some professional touch and customer service. But I guess that it may only be in the cities that they do their own delivery.
Verdict. You see, we Indians can be told a nice long story, but still at the end, we like to see the print bold and clear on the wall. Don't believe? See our films, where most often, they tell us who married who, who had whose and how many kids and how many times they did.. no, not that...! That comes in the sequel film!
So, I publish my verdict too, on the subject case of Flipkart v/s the Soul of Shyam Nambiar.
Verdict - BRAVO, to both parties, and walk out of court hand in hand, patting each others' backs, all the way to the bank.
Epilogue. I have seen many reviews here disliking FK, on valid grounds, based on individual reasons. But then, I am only doing a personal review, not an Exit Poll, and I am not yet being paid by FK to promote them! Still unsure? Ok, here is a corollary! If one were to go by the number of road accidents (that is a polite way to highlight our disastrous driving skills and manners!), would we ever drive/ ride on our pot-holed roads? .. oops, make that pot holes with roads.....:) But we do, because, we are like this OnLeee! :)
So, if you ask me, Just go ahead, start small, build trust and then buy big on Flipkart.
And by then, hopefully, they will get me on their payroll! LOL :))
Happy Flip-Karing, folks!
And while you are here, would love to hear your views in the comments section please :)
And a rating of the review wouldn't hurt. It's free, you see :))
Ciao
Shyam
