Etail, logistics companies prepare package for non-metro boom
Driven by rapid urbanisation, mushrooming of shopping malls and surge in spending, tier II-III towns have seen a significant increase in manpower demand, said Yeshab Giri, chief commercial officer, operational talent solutions, at Randstad India, a talent management company. Cities such as Jaipur, Indore, Ahmedabad, Coimbatore, Lucknow, Vadodara, Surat, Bhubaneswar, Bhopal, Chandigarh and Vizag are witnessing 25-30% more demand than the previous festive season, he said.
«Currently, ecommerce and logistics firms in tier II-III cities are hiring approximately 65% of the overall talent,» said Lohit Bhatia, president, workforce management, at Quess Corp. Metros and other tier I cities traditionally see a greater spurt in festive demand, he said.
Some companies are also running apprenticeship programmes ranging between six to 36 months in certain smaller cities, Bhatia said. «These 'Learn and Earn' programmes are also doing extremely well. Employees also learn on the job at the ecommerce and logistics companies, especially warehouse executives,» he said.
Companies are mainly hiring pickers and packers, warehouse inventory staff who manage stock levels and delivery personnel, according to industry executives.
Logistics firm Ekart, for instance, is expanding beyond the metros, with a network of 50 million cubic feet of warehousing space, a 7,000-truck fleet and a last-mile reach to 15,000 pin codes.
«Ekart is building the supply chain for India and carries the mission of democratising ecommerce for all brands,» said
