Internet shopping has surfaced as one of the state’s most popular trends. Most people prefer shopping online to going to a physical store these days, thereby adopting the technology’s ethos of making things easier and more convenient than ever.
Nagaland has been witnessing a surge in online business with the help of digital or e-commerce. It is worth noting the recent workshop organised by the Spice Board of India, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Govt of India, on 28 October, 2022 at Niathu Resort, Chümoukedima, in Nagaland, to bring the market closer through electronic mechanisms such as the e-selling of large cardamom, to be linked with e-trading sites like Amazon, Flipkart, and other e-commerce companies.
A fast-growing social platform, Instagram, since its launch in October 2010 has also become one of the most viable platforms for selling goods and other personal brands for young Naga entrepreneurs with minimal capital investments.
To be more informed, Mokokchung Times had an exclusive interview with Nagaland’s first e-commerce company, Ilandlo Services Private Limited (www.ilandlo.com).
Ilandlo is an acronym of its co-founders, Imtisunup Longchar and Lipokjungla Ozukum. Ilandlo is an almost a decade old start-up that started in 2014.
The company promotes and sells products of Northeast India origin through its website and physical stores in Dimapur, Kohima, and Mokokchung. Ilandlo also operates a warehouse in Delhi where large orders are processed. The e-commerce company is focused on products from Northeast India, delivering across India and overseas. Ilandlo has the highest and widest range of products from Northeast India on one website.
Vendors can register and upload their products themselves, and Ilandlo will help fulfil the orders. Ilandlo sells products ranging from handicrafts to handloom, cuisine, and books from across northeast India. The company also informed Mokokchung Times that the services provide a selling platform to more than 500 sellers from across Northeast India and have processed over 10,000 orders of Northeastern Indian products for customers across India.
Speaking on how the installation of an e-commerce platform will make marketing for Nagaland’s situation simpler and more straightforward, Imtisunup, the co-founder, stated that they have a positive outlook on the situation and are hopeful that it will eventually turn out to be a healthy one. He also considers that e-commerce has unquestionably transformed how a customer purchases goods from a seller, providing a buyer with more options and a single window for price comparison. He also mentioned that, on the flip side, it has empowered sellers to reduce the cost of infrastructure investment in their businesses. Imtisunup continued, “In a place like Nagaland, where bulk logistics is a high-incurring expense for business owners, e-commerce plays a vital role in establishing D2C (Direct-to-Consumer) linkages for sellers from rural areas as well.”
E-commerce, according to Ilandlo, is all about staying updated on the most recent features and information. Ilandlo informed that they have recently started a blog on their website where they share the stories of various Northeast personalities who are doing something different and creating change in society and their personal lives.
Ilandlo offers a wide range of products in various categories including food and gourmet, clothing and apparel, home and living, personal care, books and music, toys, and novelty items. Ilandlo have also launched new categories allowing customers to shop by state as well as a category for gifts where customers can get custom or pre-made gifts from the website.
In reference to user engagement and activity on the platform, Imtisunup said they are witnessing an upward trend in customers’ response over the past years. “Customers are active and responding,” he added.
How to register as a seller with Ilandlo services
The co-founders of Ilandlo Services Private Limited say that prospective sellers can fill out their information on the seller registration form on the company’s website at www.ilandlo.com after which a member of the company’s team will call the seller to discuss the terms and policies of the business, assist with onboarding, and help them post their products on the website via the seller panel.
Delivery services and safety advice
Deliveries for all orders are carried out by their logistics partners. The Ilandlo co-founders said that national orders are handled by a number of logistics partners while local deliveries are made by a fleet of riders operating within the city. “We use our warehouses in Dimapur and Delhi to deliver all of our orders,” they said.
Ilandlo also follows a strong online safety protocol. “We ensure the safety of our customers by using SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) security for our platform, encrypted password storage, a no data sharing policy, trusted payment gateways, and the reviews of our several thousand customers who have purchased and experienced our platform,” it was informed.
Objectives set forward by Ilandlo
Imtisunup stated that their long-term objective is to reach and assist all of the interior Northeast Indian states and foster entrepreneurship by offering a platform that is specifically geared towards the region. He also stated that their goal is to create a market where Northeast Indian products may be sold in order to empower sustainable livelihoods in the region.
Addressing the value of entrepreneurship in Nagaland, Imtisunup said that while not everyone can pass the test, without trying, no one will ever succeed. He added that entrepreneurship is just as vital in Nagaland as getting a government job.
The state’s ability to strengthen its economy and create opportunities for the broader public is crucial, Imtisunup remarked. He believes that starting a business should be an option, not a last resort. For a long-lasting business, Imtisunup said, “We need entrepreneurs who can be successful, scalable, and who can keep their books clean” and observed that Nagaland has “a long way to go in terms of trade and business.”
Imtisunup suggested that concentrating just on agribusiness and allied sectors will not boost the state’s economy and pointed out that IT and manufacturing sectors must also be given adequate attention. The Ilandlo co-founder said, “The next generation of innovative ideas has to be encouraged and given wings by taking risks with younger entrepreneurs.”