Festive Shopping Boom Raises a Big Question: Can Neighbourhood Shops Compete With E-Commerce?

India’s festive shopping boom is bringing billions of rupees to e-commerce platforms, but traditional retailers are warning that deep online discounts are increasingly putting neighbourhood shops and physical markets at a disadvantage.

The Confederation of West Bengal Trade Associations (CWBTA) on Monday raised concerns over the growing price gap between online and offline sellers, claiming that e-commerce companies recorded around ₹24,000 crore in sales in the first two days of the festive season. The trade body said aggressive discounting could hurt traditional retailers during the most important period of the year for their businesses.

CWBTA president Sushil Poddar said the concern was not the expansion of digital commerce but the widening difference in prices for identical products. Local retailers, he argued, cannot always match the offers available on large online platforms while meeting the costs of running physical stores.

Shopkeepers must pay rent, salaries, electricity bills, taxes, transportation and inventory costs, often while operating on relatively thin margins. When consumers find the same branded product substantially cheaper online, local businesses risk losing sales even during the festive rush.

The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has also called for fair treatment of online and offline businesses, stressing that it does not oppose digital trade but objects to pricing practices that make survival increasingly difficult for traditional retailers.

The CWBTA has urged the government and relevant authorities to examine the growing price disparity, improve price transparency and consider reasonable price parity for identical products sold through different channels.

The stakes are particularly high during the festive season, when small traders invest heavily in stock in anticipation of stronger demand. A shift towards online purchases can leave shops with unsold inventory, slower stock turnover and shrinking profits, putting pressure on businesses that depend on seasonal sales.

Poddar said the scale of online transactions should serve as a signal for policymakers, warning that the long-term impact on traditional retail cannot be ignored.

The trade body clarified that it was not seeking restrictions on e-commerce or consumer choice. Instead, it wants online and offline businesses to compete on a more level playing field.

Traditional markets, it said, remain an important part of Bengal’s economic and social fabric. The challenge for policymakers is to preserve that retail ecosystem while allowing digital commerce to expand without undermining the viability of neighbourhood businesses.