Online festive sales in India are estimated to have reached ₹29,800-30,900 crore between October 7 and 10, down 7-10 per cent from the corresponding four-day period last year, as higher smartphone prices and the absence of a GST-led demand boost resulted in a flatter opening to the season, according to Datum Intelligence.
The research firm estimates that mobile phones will account for 30 per cent of festive sales this year, compared with 35 per cent last year. However, the overall festive season is expected to grow, with spending spread across categories and over a longer period rather than concentrated in the opening days.
“What happened last year was not going to repeat this year because last year there was a GST 2.0 and everyone was buying, especially retail items, to get that benefit out of it,” said Satish Meena, analyst, Datum Intelligence.
“The sales overall for the month are expected to grow 25-30 per cent, but first week is — don’t expect the same as last year because there are so many things missing compared to last year,” he said.
Platform-level numbers showed strong demand in several categories despite the softer overall opening. Amazon reported a 100 per cent year-on-year increase in products ordered in the first 12 hours of its Great Indian Festival sale, while Meesho’s day-one orders rose 75 per cent. Myntra recorded four times its usual demand in the first 24 hours of its Big Fashion Festival, and Flipkart reported 6.3 million peak concurrent users in its opening hour.
Electronics and appliances continued to draw shoppers, with Amazon reporting strong demand for large appliances, premium wearables and home entertainment systems. However, Meena said smartphone upgrades were not generating the same momentum as last year.
“Frankly, smartphone apart from the price, there’s no buzz around the models also. As a customer, you don’t see updating your phone again and again,” he said.
Meena expects shoppers to increasingly purchase other categories throughout the season, with fashion, beauty and home-related products contributing to demand. He also cautioned that brands seeking to move consumers towards premium products need to demonstrate a corresponding improvement in quality.
“Most of the brands have increased the price without actually putting a thought behind the product,” he said, adding that customers would not return if products failed to deliver on quality or efficacy.
Datum expects the first week to account for 46% of festive sales this year, compared with 48% in 2025, leaving a larger share of spending for the run-up to Diwali on November 8. Quick commerce is also expected to account for 16% of festive sales, up from 12% last year, as shoppers increasingly make purchases closer to the festival.
Published on October 12, 2026
