Since I got a lot of comments on the How to start and grow your eCommerce side “biijness”, I thought I’d take some time to outline the costs of starting a small eCommerce business in India.
Say you are a stay-at-home-dad who wants to sell your own neat apparel designs online, or a creative mom who can make some excellent handicrafts at home. Now you are interested in setting up a storefront on the web so you can “get in on this eCommerce thing” or “make money on the side” or “make some extra revenue when you sleep”. Here’s what you need to get going.
| Item | Who you need to set this up? | How much will it cost? |
| Company Incorporation(MOA, AOA, PAN Card, Company legal entity, Bank Account) | CA, Accountant or Company Secretary | Rs. 50,000 (Bangalore) |
| Payment Gateway (To accept credit card, net banking or debit card online) | EBS, CC Avenue, your bank (Axis, HDFC, etc.) | Rs. 25,000 (initiation fee)2 – 4% transaction fee (negotiable)
Rs. 500 – Rs. 1500 monthly fee (can get this waived) |
| eCommerce Software | Shopping cart software companies (Shopify, Big Commerce, MartJack, IQecommerce) + Do the catalog setup yourself | Rs.1000 to Rs. 10,000 per month starting |
| eCommerce team (Optional if you use off-the-shelf hosted software) | Build your own team of 2 people to custom build eCommerce storefront | Rs. 1.5 to Rs. 2.5 Lakhs per month |
| Computer, machines, servers for developers (if you are building a team) | Go Daddy, Big Rock, your local PC reseller | Rs. 50,000 + Rs 10,000 per month for hosting (basic plan) |
| Office Space (if you have a team that wants to work in an office) | Get a small, cheap shared space instead of a big swanking office | Rs. 5000 per month |
| Shipping | Blue Dart, Aramex or Fed Ex (AFL) | Rs. 20,000 (setup account, negotiable to zero) + Rs. 25 to Rs. 45 per shipment (up to 500 grams in weight) |
| Initial Marketing | Do it yourself (poster, flyers, send email to friends) | Typically zero, but budget Rs. 20,000 |
| Computer (Desktop or Laptop) + Internet + Phone | Assuming you don’t have one already | Rs. 30,000 + Rs. 2000 per month (for a good internet connection) |
| Total starting costs | Minimum: Rs. 1 Lakh plus Rs. 25,000 per month (using hosted shopping cart software)Maximum: Rs. 4-5 Lakhs plus Rs. 2 Lakhs per month (building a team and hosting yourself) |
9 comments
The costs are really funny. E-commerce websites don’t require such a big investment now. I have my own startup (www[dot]kraftpixel[dot]in) and we start at Rs. 35,000 with quarterly hosting charges (with 99.9% uptime) of Rs. 7,500 onwards (as per necessity depending on load average of CPUs)
Hi abhishek how much did it cost you to register your business and can you tell sum of ur recurring exp like tax and all
Hey abhishek , I am moving in the same direction so i would like you to please share your experience, difficulties you faced and the achievements you’d won . So that i can minimize my risk for my startup. contact me on 9453030771. If you are able to.
Thanks.
hi Abhishek , i also want to open a e-buisness ,would u like share ur experience …what difficulties u have faced to set up . and most what is the budget needed . pls contact me on 9816849211
hello abhishek
hope you are doing well.actually i have a interest to know about the bussiness process of a start up copmany and cost to set up this.pls help me… thank you.
helloo abhishek i want to start a online marketin can u plz tell me what is the acctual cost to make a online site
How much does it cost to open a shopping portal in a state ?
Hello Abhishek_Gharat,
Thanks for sharing d major difficulties one who planning to start an E-Comm,
Abhi just i want to Do Some Conversation with you, Regards to the E-Comm, So plz gimme a Call
Cell: 9030546461
Ty Buddy.
Just the kind of training provided by the ‘iSchool’ – for new entrepreneurs. Based in Mumbai.
http://www.ischoolOfSuccess.com/
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