Grasim Industries Ltd, Aditya Birla Group's flagship company, has announced that it plans to enter the B2B e-commerce platform for the building materials segment. The company, reportedly, plans to invest around INR 2000 crore over the next five years. It is said that the B2B platform will focus on micro, small and medium businesses in the building materials segment and may be extended to other relevant categories.
Aditya Birla Group Twitter handle
"The foray into B2B e-commerce is yet another strategic portfolio choice as it crystallizes our intent to invest in the new-age, high-growth digital space. The building materials segment presents a huge scalable business opportunity, with a proven path to profitability. With this foray, Grasim would be able to leverage the large B2B ecosystem within the Aditya Birla Group," said Kumar Mangalam Birla, chairman, Aditya Birla Group, in a statement.
"The key value proposition would be an integrated procurement solution, including on-time delivery and a superior product range at competitive pricing. Grasim's digital platform will address various challenges within the existing supply chain," the company said in a statement.
It is also added that, "The company believes that B2B e-commerce is a high growth opportunity with attractive long-term returns and will be highly value accretive to its stakeholders."
As per market estimates, the overall building materials procurement segment in India has grown at a compound annual growth rate of approximately 14 per cent over the last three years. This industry is estimated at approximately $100 billion with current digital penetration of just 2 per cent.
The global B2B e-commerce market size is expected to reach $20.9 trillion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 17.5 per cent during 2020 to 2027, according to a report by Research and Markets.