Intra-city delivery service Borzo in a survey on the growth of the MSME sector on Wednesday highlighted sales and customer acquisition as the biggest pain points in business growth for MSMEs. While 16 per cent of the survey respondents noted sales and customer acquisition as the biggest concern; recruitment or manpower problem was the second biggest issue as per 13 per cent of MSMEs surveyed.
Packaging and inventory management posed significant operational challenges for 12 per cent and 11 per cent MSMEs respectively. Marketing, payments, funds/finance, economic costs/pricing were a few more challenges faced by MSMEs.
The survey report, however, didn’t mention the total number of respondents and methodology.
Borzo said it is currently present in India, Brazil, Mexico Indonesia, Malaysia, Turkey etc., and is used by over 2 million customers ranging from individuals to enterprises with the main focus on SMEs. In India, the company serves 22 cities.
According to the survey, 32 per cent of MSMEs operated through both retail and online channels, indicating a multi-channel approach. 30 per cent of MSMEs said they run their businesses entirely through retail channels whereas 40 per cent were online businesses.
Importantly, 79 per cent said there was no slowdown in their business while 21 per cent claimed that they were facing a slowdown in business. For 49 per cent, the demand of orders was increased by 20-30 per cent while 16 per cent noted a 30-40 per cent jump in demand of orders. On the other hand, 15 per cent said they faced a downfall in demand.
The average per order ticket size for MSMEs ranged between Rs 750 and Rs 1,500 while the average ticket size of all orders in a day was between Rs 9,500 and Rs 15,000.
“While challenges such as financing, sales and customer acquisition, inventory management persist, MSMEs are also embracing the need for sustainable packaging, precise, and cost-effective same-day deliveries to meet evolving customer demands,” said Eugene Panfilov Managing Director, Borzo India and Regional Director, Borzo Brazil in the report.
67 per cent of MSMEs in the survey said they were using sustainable packaging materials, indicating a growing emphasis on environmental responsibility among businesses while 33 per cent said they haven’t yet transitioned to eco-friendly packaging materials.