Flipkart Announces Billion-Brand to Sell 'Made-in-India' Products

Flipkart is having another crack at differentiating its products from rivals' offerings. The company on Monday announced Billion, a new self-brand under which it will be selling a range of products made especially for the Indian market.

A slew of products including backpacks, mixer grinders, irons, and cookware appliances will soon be available under Billion brand name through the company's shopping website, it said in an emailed statement. The products sold under the brand will also be manufacturer in India. Billion is backed by the Flipkart assurance infrastructure.

The company conceived these products by looking at reviews from thousands of its customers, Sachin Bansal, co-founder and executive chairman of the company said in a press statement. These products will aim to address the "shortcomings of existing brands," he said. The company says it will be able to closely monitor product quality of the products it will sell under Billion.

Flipkart's move on Monday, which comes on the heels of an unsuccessful attempt to acquire Snapdeal, isn't unprecedented even for the company. It has made several such attempts to sell products under its brand name over the years, many of which are still in existence.

Just last month, for instance, the company launched Divastri, its first private fashion label, as part of Flipkart Fashion, the division inside the company which includes Myntra (acquired by Flipkart in 2014) and Jabong (acquired last year, by Myntra). Flipkart Fashion accounts for 70 percent of the online apparel market.

Late last year, Flipkart announced SmartBuy, a new category which offers an "exclusive range of quality everyday products" such as chargers and data cables under company's own-brand name. The move was similar to Amazon's, which offers a range of products including backpacks and chargers under Amazon Basics brand name.

Flipkart also had Digiflip, a now-defunct brand name under which Flipkart sold phones and tablets; Citron, under which it sells home appliances and personal health care products, and Flippd for apparel products.